Music of Wales

 What is Welsh music?

Wales is popularly known as the ‘Land of Song’ as Welsh music has played an important role in Wales’ history and culture.

When people think of Wales, they think of smooth choral music, melodious religious hymns and epic folk ballads.

Welsh music isn’t all traditional, though, Wales is also home to a number of incredibly famous popular music artists with the likes of Tom Jones, Bonnie Tyler and Charlotte Church becoming world-famous singers.

In more recent years, there is also an avid rock scene in Wales, with places like Cardiff and Newport being recognised for their thriving Welsh music scenes. In fact, Cardiff has recently been named ‘Music City’ with the second highest number of independent music venues in the UK.

What is the national instrument of Wales?

The harp is one of the most commonly associated instruments with Wales, particularly the triple harp or three-row harp. The traditional harp consists of three rows of strings which allow the player to play in different keys. While modern harps feature a pedal to enable players to change keys, the traditional triple harp has regained popularity by a number of popular Welsh harpists in recent years.

Other traditional Welsh instruments include the ‘crwth’, the fiddle, Welsh Bagpipes and the Pibgorn.

A crwth is a stringed instrument played in Wales during the Middle Ages before it was replaced by the fiddle. The fiddle is still a big part of Welsh folk music today.

The pibgorn is similar to a modern-day flute or recorder, and was a popular Welsh instrument in its time. It saw a resurgence in use when Welsh folk became popular again in recent years.

A popular form of Welsh music that incorporates the harp is ‘penillion’, also referred to as Cerdd Dant, meaning string music in English. It is a traditional form of Welsh singing poetry or vocal improvisation over a harp melody.

Cerdd Dant is an important aspect of Welsh culture, even today. In fact, a festival is held each year to celebrate The tradition. It also plays a big part in the National Eisteddfod.

What does Welsh music sound like?

Let’s take a look at the different styles of Welsh music and how it has changed over time. We'll also look at some famous traditional Welsh songs and their history.

Traditional Welsh music

Wales is well known for its traditional folk music, similar to the Celtic music of Scotland and Ireland.

Welsh music is synonymous with tradition and seasonal customs, too. The earliest known songs from Wales are related to different celebrations, such as Mari Lwyd and Shrove Tuesday, etc.

During the festivities, there would be feasting, dancing and singing of processional songs. This music would often be very repetitive in nature, much like carols.

Later, following the Act of Union, Welsh music was actually suppressed for many years due to the promotion of the English language. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the church frowned upon traditional music and dance.

Throughout the era of folk music in Wales, the most popular form of folk song was the love song. These songs would feature lyrics pertaining to unrequited love or sorrow of parting, as well as singing of the desired lady’s beauty.

Another very popular form of song was the ballad. These would often contain lyrics pertaining to tales of manual labour, the Welsh landscape and everyday life in Wales.

What are some famous traditional Welsh songs?

There are several beloved traditional Welsh songs sung throughout Wales and beyond during special events and sports games. Let’s take a look at some of the most famous:

Men of Harlech

Men of Harlech is a popular Welsh song and military march that was written about the seven-year battle at Harlech Castle between the years 1461 and 1468 as part of the Wars of Roses. The siege lasted longer than any in the history of the British Isles!

The song has also been associated with an earlier battle when the castle fell to Owain Glyndŵr during his attempt against English rule in 1404.

The song is believed to have been one of the early folk songs in Wales, but its melody was first published without lyrics in 1794 and was titled Gorhoffedd Gwŷr Harlech – March of the Men of Harlech. While it is unknown exactly when the song was first sung with words, the earliest version of it with lyrics was in 1830. There have since been many variations of the song published, and an English version is actually sung before every Cardiff City home match.

Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau

Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau is the unofficial Welsh National anthem and has been since 1905 after becoming incredibly popular among Welsh sports fans, particularly rugby fans.

The song was written in 1856 by a father and son from Pontypridd, Glamorgan. Evan James wrote the lyrics and his son James James, a harpist, composed the music.

The anthem proves to be a powerful tool for inspiration and Welsh pride. The lyrics are extremely prideful, making reference to Wales’ incredible landscape, as well as well-known bards, poets, and singers, and those who have honourably died for Welsh freedom. The song also expresses a desire to protect the Welsh language.

Fun fact: A statue honouring the songwriters has been erected in Ynysangharad in their hometown of Pontypridd.

Sosban fach

Sosban Fach is one of the most popular traditional Welsh folk songs that is sung in the Welsh language.

The song, which means “Little Saucepan”, was inspired by a verse from another song called Rheolau yr Aelwyd written by Mynyddog, Welsh-language poet, singer, and Eisteddfod conductor.

The verse was altered slightly, and four more verses were added to create the song Welsh people know and love today. Despite the patriotic melody, the lyrics are nothing like that of Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau, the song actually details the struggles of an overwhelmed housewife.

There are a number of variations of the song lyrics, however, most notably when sung by rugby fans when chanting at rival teams.

Contemporary Welsh music

From the 20th century, onwards, Wales has seen lots of contemporary artists and bands find global success.

In the 1960s, two of the most famous singers to ever come out of Wales, Tom Jones and Shirley Bassey, became incredibly popular all over the world, defining Welsh music for years.

Famous Welsh music artists

Let’s take a look at some of the most famous Welsh music artists and how they found success in Wales and beyond!

Dame Shirley Bassey

Dame Shirley Bassey (born Shirley Veronica Bassey on January 8, 1937) is a Welsh singer from Cardiff.

She is well known for her distinctive and expressive voice, particularly as the singer of three of the James Bond theme songs, Goldfinger (1964), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), and Moonraker (1979).

She has been singing and performing with great success since 1953, and is still incredibly popular today.

In 1959, she became the first Welsh person to have a number one single on the UK Singles Chart. Fast forward to 2020 and the success of her latest album, I Owe It All To You, made her the first female artist to chart an album in the top 40 of the UK Albums Chart in seven consecutive decades!

Sir Tom Jones

Sir Thomas John Woodward OBE, is a world famous Welsh music artist, actor and coach on The Voice UK.

He was born on June 7, 1940 in Treforest, Pontypridd. His incredible career began as a frontman in a local Welsh beat group named Tommy Scott and the Senators in the early 1960s.

After gaining lots of local attention, Jones signed a record deal and began releasing solo tracks. His single “It’s Not Unusual” was an international hit. Since then he has sold 100 million records in the UK and US.

He followed in the footsteps of Shirley Bassey, and was also invited to write and record a James Bond theme song, this time for the film Thunderball.

Jones’ impressive career has also seen him take on a few acting roles throughout his professional life, and is currently a coach on The Voice UK.

Bonnie Tyler

Gaynor Hopkins, more famously known as Bonnie Tyler, was born on June 8, 1951 in Skewen, Neath.

The Welsh singer gained success in 1977 when she released her album The World Starts Tonight. Then, in the 1980s she released her most famous song “Total Eclipse of the Heart”.

Her career has spanned five decades and has seen her release some of the best-selling singles of all time and earned her several nominations and awards.

Fun fact: Tyler represented the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013!!

Charlotte Church

Charlotte Church is a singer-songwriter, TV presenter, actor, and political activist from Llandaff in Cardiff.

She was born Charlotte Maria Reed on February 21, 1986. Her career began when she was just a child as a classical singer. She then moved onto pop music in 2005.

During her time as a mainstream artist, she has sold more than 10 million records worldwide! She has also hosted her own chat show, The Charlotte Church Show.