Seattle's 13th Annual Gymanfa Ganu and Concert
Save these dates ! Don't miss out on live Welsh singing !
13th Annual Seattle Gymanfa Ganu -- October 8, 2000.
The Seattle Welsh Choir (Côr Cymraeg) presents its 13th annual Gymanfa
Ganu at 2:30pm on Sunday, October 8, at the Lake City Presbyterian Church,
3841 NE 123rd Street, Seattle. This Gymanfa Ganu will be led by Beverly
Ratajak, of Corvallis, Oregon.
For more information, contact Merideth Kelley, at (206) 781-5272, or
Ellen Webber, at (206) 522-9853.
Click here for more detail on the Gymanfa
Ganu 2000 -- see our mailing piece.
Gymanfa Ganu Questions and Answers
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Q: WHAT is a Gymanfa Ganu ?
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A: A full session of community congregational singing in four-part harmony.
The gymanfa will typically include fifteen to twenty hymns, sung by the
congregation in both English & Welsh.Special music is often also performed
by virtuoso soloists with regional or even international reputations.
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Q: SO is a Gymanfa Ganu a religious service, or a concert, a community
singalong, or what?
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A: It is a unique kind of almalgam of a religious service, a concert, and
a community singalong -- it has important elements of all of these.
It does generally include an invocation, and a benediction, by a pastor,
and it is typically (but not necessarily) held in a traditional church
sanctuary. Community singing and participation by all those present
is an important element, too -- so the Gymanfa is not a "spectator sport"
in the sense that a traditional concert is. Unlike some community
singalongs, attendees bring special hymnbooks, issued by the Welsh
National Gymanfa Ganu Association (WNGGA), and they expect to sing
in parts - SATB (Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass). But like a traditional
concert, there is special music by honored soloists, a formal printed program,
and lots of applause.
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Q: CAN I come to a Gymanfa? I don't speak Welsh, or own a WNGGA
hymnbook! Will I be welcome?
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A: YES! Our Welsh tradition is to welcome all who wish to join us in song.
You don't need to speak Welsh -- about half of the singing is in English,
and singing "La" for the Welsh part works just fine. And as for the
music, loaner copies of the hymns being sung are available free of charge
at the Gymanfa.
This page last updated: September, 2000.
Write to us: Puget Sound Welsh Association
