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Sioned and Jeanne both enjoyed the performance by Only Men Aloud – a contemporary/non-traditional men’s choir that recently won BBC’s Last Choir Standing competition.
The choir had fun with a medley of Tom Jones songs – the first link is a wider view so you can see the whole choir but it has is more “background noise” and cuts off at the end of the first song, while in the second link you can see the on-stage shenanigans better and hear the complete medley but there are more “heads” in the way: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6sPF_AgCyg and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVvNJMmGjUg&feature=related
If you prefer a more traditional song, here is a link for a clip featuring Cwm Rhondda from the Last Choir Standing competition: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4xYIGH-pI8.
Sioned also enjoyed watching the iron monger forging iron and the weaver spinning wool.
Jeanne’s time at the Festival was not “all play” -- she did enjoy her two co-presentations with Welsh storyteller David Ambrose. They were working in conjunction with the National Library of Wales’ “Wales-Ohio Project” and Jeanne talked about Welsh immigration to southern Ohio. David read excerpts from “The Family Tree of John Jones Tirbach” and a letter written by a Welsh immigrant in Raccoon Township, Gallia County. Jeanne also told the story of the farm in Raccoon Township, still owned by her family, purchased in 1834 (for $1.24 per acre!!) by her great-great grandfather, David D. Jones.
Besides seeing friends from Ohio, Georgia, and other places, Jeanne saw WSCO members Cheryl and Stacy Evans.
Stacy called Jeanne and David’s presentation a “fascinating experience” and he was most interested in the Roots tent, where the presentation took place, because of its emphasis on genealogy. He said the Smithsonian staff worked eight years on the showcasing of Wales for this event!
Cheryl enjoyed the “’hands-on’ exhibits that demonstrated so much of the culture of Wales” – coracle building, hand-made lobster traps, cooking skills being shown in a tent with actual furniture displaying a typical Welsh kitchen, basket makers, a blacksmith and a woodworker. The Evanses also visited one of the Smithsonian’s indoor exhibits – “The Welsh Table” – with displays of pottery and other table ware by Welsh artisans.
WSCO’s very own love spoon carver Laura Jenkins Gorum, who graciously donated the lovely hand-carved spoon we auctioned off at this year’s picnic, flew in to D.C. for just one day to attend the Festival with the main purpose of seeing and talking with the love spoon carver who inspired her to follow in his footsteps. There is a YouTube link at the end of this article showing the carver at work. Laura has given us a link to pictures she took: http://www.blakespa.com/index.php?p=1_23_Smithsonian%20Folklife%20Festival%20Pictures.
I enjoyed the Crasdant performance that Ruth referred to (but I worried that the clogger might pass out in the heat!), the same singing workshop that Ken attended, the Roots tent, the herbals exhibit, and talking with the coracle maker. He was having trouble with his materials due to the high humidity but was “on a schedule” to finish the coracle he was working on because it was slated to be put on exhibit in the Smithsonian. There were several models/styles of coracles on display.
I can’t imagine the fantastic expense of bringing all the artisans and their materials, the performers and their instruments, wardrobes and equipment, and the displays and their organizers and exhibiters to this country! The scope of the Festival was absolutely amazing.
I was most interested in attending the Friday night Dance Party but during the second dance they closed down the whole Festival, chased us out of the giant tent, and shut down the electricity generators because of a quickly-moving incoming thunderstorm. Everyone made a mad dash through the swirling dust for the buildings or the underground train station – some didn’t make it before they were drenched.
I’m sure there were other WSCO members in attendance at the Festival who I did not have a chance to talk with or have not heard from, among them I know was one of our Welsh folk dancers, Patti Jones, and her husband Jeff. I’m sure I’ve missed others.
It’s my guess that the “WSCO related” person who visited most frequently may have been Carole Edwards Haley’s son Tal (short for Talwyn) who works in downtown D. C. and popped over to the Festival on his lunch hours at least three days. Teg Lantz reports that her brother was very impressed with the exhibits.
| Festival website: http://www.festival.si.edu/ | |
| More links to Festival sights and sounds: | |
| -husband & wife team, guitar & fiddle, she sings - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChEsiQeae4k&NR=1 | |
| Festival overviews – they cover different things: | |
| -- Asian rapper RuninDC – views many of the exhibits; interesting and humorous; funky background music | |
| http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q21nAd2XcS8&NR=1 | |
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--- More “traditional” overview – Welsh American Day: starts with Crasdant performance (the guitarist did the clogging demo we talked about), explanation of musical instrument crwth, shows printer, love spoon carver, the Story Circle; Welsh music in background and actual sounds of the Festival |
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| http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x14N4VqwJA0&NR=1 | |