National Eisteddfod to honour Geraint Jarman in special evening event

During this year’s National Eisteddfod, a special evening will be held to remember and honour Geraint Jarman, who died earlier this year.

Jarman, a musician, poet, actor, filmmaker, and mentor to generations of young artists, was an extremely influential figure in the world of the arts in Wales.

Although he created and performed in Welsh, his first language, his work was full of international influences – from European poetry to reggae, rock, country music and much more. He had a clear vision: to show that Wales is an integral part of the wider cultural world.

Connections

The evening is organised in collaboration with Geraint’s family and will be held in Y Babell Lên at 21:30 on Wednesday 6 August.

Musical events producer and chief executive of Sain, Kev Tame and Marged Tudur, who has studied Jarman’s work for her PhD, will blend his music with his poetry, drawing attention to the deep connections between the two.

As Marged says, “Everyone knows him as a musician, but he was also a talented poet. It has been an exciting experience to discover the connections between his songs and his poems.”

The evening will include contributions from prominent artists such as Rhys Ifans, Twm Morys, Huw Stephens, Rogue Jones, Aleighcia Scott, Mei Gwynedd and Gareth Bonello with Lisa Gwilym leading the evening.

Geraint Jarman was born in Denbigh, but moved with his family to Cardiff when he was only four years old – a move that would greatly influence his life and creative work.

After leaving school, he formed the group Bara Menyn with Heather Jones and Meic Stevens – a funny but meaningful name, referring to the need to earn a living in order to be able to follow their artistic dreams.

Jarman was a pioneer from the start. He co-wrote a rock-folk opera with Meic Stevens, Etifeddieth Drwy’r Mwg, which was broadcast on HTV in 1970 as a special experiment for St David’s Day – discussing environmental issues in a completely new way at the time.

Full of spirit

In 1976, he released his first album Gobaith Mawr y Ganrif on the Sain label, opening a highly productive period where he published nine albums in a decade, and another eight over the following three decades. His songs were varied in tone – sweet, edgy, playful – but always original and full of spirit.

One of his most iconic albums, Hen Wlad Fy Tadau (1978), included a unique version of the national anthem, alongside tracks such as Ethiopia Newydd, inspired by rastafarianism, and the mischievous love song Merch Tŷ Cyngor .

He developed a deep love for reggae in the 1970s, attending the Casablanca Club in Cardiff docks – and later recorded two full length reggae albums. His love for the genre was sincere and influential, opening doors to a new sound in the Welsh language.

Jarman influenced Welsh bands such as Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci and Ffa Coffi Pawb, and in 1997 he directed a documentary of the Super Furry Animals’ first world tour – evidence of his continuing interest in contemporary music and his support for new artists.

Jarman was also a talented actor. He appeared on screen as PC Gordon Hughes in the comedy series Glas Y Dorlan(1977), and in the drama Off To Philadelphia in the Morning (1978).  And, of course, he was the beloved original voice behind Superted.

The Eisteddfod will be held in Is-y-Coed, Wrexham from 2-9 August. For more information and tickets, visit the Eisteddfod’s site here.