Celebrating European Folk Day

Antwn Owen-Hicks, Trac Cymru

Trac Cymru is the national development organisation for traditional music in Wales. It was established 25 years ago by Welsh traditional musicians, to develop and protect our traditional music, and increase the amount of participation and excellence in the sector.

Since we began, our activities have generated more than 188,000 attendances. Our online resources have been accessed 280,000 times. We have run more than 1,800 workshops and training events, 80 separate youth and community courses, and created over 500 freelance jobs in over 70 locations throughout Wales, in both Cymraeg and English.

Our professional development programmes have seen us deliver 580 performances, 35 professional training courses and we’ve represented the music of Wales at over 40 international showcases and conferences.

In 2003 we established the first Tŷ Gwerin at the Eisteddfod Genedlaethol, which has developed into one of the most popular presenting venues during the Eisteddfod week. We also created the first ever national folk youth ensemble, which became the band AVANC.

Trac Cymru was a key partner in establishing and building the European Folk Network, and we continue to be a strong voice for Wales in this continent-wide forum, with Daniel KilBride as a member of the Board of Directors.

European Folk Day

European Folk Day was created by the European Folk Network in 2023, and takes place annually on 23rd September, to celebrate folk music traditions from any community across Europe, whether historically indigenous, ethnically diverse or newly-migrant.

However, in September 2023, Trac Cymru learned that we would no longer receive core revenue funding from the Arts Council of Wales, after 20 years, which presented us with a significant challenge. Could we continue to exist as the only full-time, professional Welsh folk organisation, without some degree of core funding support?

Thanks to a three-year Heritage Lottery grant for our song-writing project Cân y Cymoedd, and other Lottery project grants from the Arts Council of Wales for our youth programme Gwerin Ifainc and a new touring project TAITH, we’ve been able to continue to deliver high-quality folk music projects to a range of people and communities.

Undoubtedly, our reach has been hampered by the need to support the organisation on project funding alone, but despite the withdrawal of our core funding, two years on, as Dafydd Iwan famously sings, Ry’n ni yma o hyd! (we’re still here!)

We’re a small team of four, led by our Director and one of the founders of Trac Cymru, Daniel KilBride, and a dedicated Board of Trustees. We’ve maintained the number of people in the team since September 2023, no-one was made redundant and we’ve been able to employ new people, to replace those who decided to move on, thanks in part to Jobs Protection funding, run by ACW and supported by the Welsh Government.

As well as the projects noted above, we were a key partner in the delivery of the Arts Council of Wales’ ‘Review of Traditional Music in Wales’ this year (the irony is not lost on us), together with our partner organisation, Tŷ Cerdd. The review’s findings focus heavily on the need for greater support and development of traditional arts at grass roots, professional and educational levels with dedicated funding for the sector, similar to the situation in Scotland, Ireland and England.

Generational links

For every Dafydd Iwan there are hundreds of fiddlers, harp players, dancers and singers meeting in kitchens, cafes and bars to sing, dance and play. Folk music is, by definition, handed down from one generation to the next. If one link is taken from the chain, the chain breaks, and the music stops.

If our schools won’t teach it, or those growing up in the most deprived communities are unable to afford it, or have access to fiddles and music lessons, then it could just become a hobby for the well off.

The need for more support is urgent and we hope that new funding will enable many more people across Wales to engage with, and take part in our traditional music.

So, to celebrate European Folk Day this year, Trac Cymru has commissioned a series of short videos by some of our leading folk artists for the public to enjoy on social media platforms, along with playlists and information about local activities.

This has been supported by a grant from the Welsh Government. There will be similar activities and events across Europe, which are detailed on the European Folk Network website https://www.europeanfolkday.eu/events/ 

We can’t yet say that the future is bright, but it is hopeful. It will continue to be a challenge for us, in terms of financial resources, but we believe that our traditional music is a valuable and unique expression of culture that’s worth fighting for.

There is now a wide range of excellent Welsh folk artists, performing internationally, many of whom have been through Trac Cymru’s courses and training sessions, such as Cerys Hafana, Gwilym Bowen Rhys, the members of Calan and VRï, to name a few. There are sessions and gigs across the country and a growing interest in our indigenous folk music.

We’re grateful to be in the position we’re in, and very proud of the work we’ve done and continue to do. We could be doing a lot more, and reaching many more people, but that requires resources, both financial and human.

We remain convinced that there can be no strategic development within the world of traditional music without a strategic body that represents it, advocates on its behalf and delivers activity.

We’ll continue to seek funding and fight for our traditional music, for as long as we can.

Diolch o galon to our many supporters, musicians, dancers, participants and audiences, who are the very lifeblood of our traditional arts, ymlaen!