My last break away from home was spent in West Wales for a few days in early 2021. While there, we stopped in the market town of Tregaron, which is based in the upper Teifi Valley and is an excellent base from which to explore this beautiful and maybe less well-trodden part of Wales. After plenty of walking and exploring, along with the obligatory Welsh cakes, it was soon time to head back home to the levels, tors and hills of Somerset. Memories of all this came rushing back last night when I saw a Tweet from Burd Ellen about a festival in Tregaron from 4-6 March 2022 at the beautiful Oriel Rhiannon Gallery situated in the market at the centre of this small town.
This is the first of a new festival titled St Caron’s Well Festival of Psych and strange music Ymunwch â ni ar gyfer Gŵyl Seic a cherddoriaeth ryfedd gyntaf. I wasn’t aware of St Caron’s Well when I was last there, but it’s described as newly opened, and the Well will form part of the festivities with a bagpipe-led ritual walk to dress the well. As an aside, St Caron’s Church which lies at the town’s centre, is thought to be built on a bronze age barrow.
For those unfamiliar with Well dressing, these water sources were often celebrated and decorated each year with flowers and garlands and, in some cases, with intricate designs using flower petals.
The first record of such dressings goes back to 1348, and one of the most famous, situated in Tissington, Derbyshire, attracts an estimated 50,000 people each year when six wells (Children’s Well, Coffin Well, Hall Well, Hands Well, Town Well and Yew Tree Well) are decorated during the week of Ascension Sunday with pictures formed by pressing flower petals and other organic materials into clay.
While the well dressing looks set to be a central celebration during the festival, the area was also famous for another sort of gathering in the distant past, that of Drovers. It was one of the prominent locations for drovers to gather, who would then take their livestock on foot (before the advent of rail) all the way to the southeast of England to be sold.
Among Tregaron’s famous residents was the ‘Welsh Robin Hood’ – Thomas Jones of Tregaron, better known as Twm Siôn Cati (c.1530-1609), who was a cousin of Dr John Dee, the mathematician, geographer, astronomer and Queen Elizabeth I’s ‘favourite philosopher’.
Turning to the music then, the festival is organised by Listen to the Voice of Fire. Their events cover Folk, Classical, Computer-music, DIY, Soundart, soundscape, environmental, visual music, Psychedelic, drone and electroacoustic.
The gathering is described as weird folk ambient people and modular synth people mangling their wares with improv and psychedelic dreamers. Among the lineup are some familiar names, including Burd Ellen, Rhodri Davies, Alula Down and Ceri Rhys Matthews (Fernhill). Also performing are Psych-rock Pan Welsh French musicians Moongoose, itdreamedtome, Pefkin, Alan Holmes and Zoe Skoulding, De Louet, Crausius & Modular Synth Meet. It sounds like it’s going to be quite an experience.
When:
Fri, Mar 4, 2022, 7:00 PM –
Sun, Mar 6, 2022, 4:30 PM GMT
Where:
Oriel Rhiannon Gallery
Y Sgwâr
Tregaron
SY25 6JL
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