A History of Welsh Music

The first broad overview of Welsh music history, examining practices, repertoires, institutions, and the idea of the 'musical nation'.

Ranging from early medieval musical bards to pop music in the twenty-first century, this book describes Welsh musical practices and traditions and the forces that have shaped and directed them, probing the reasons why the idea of Wales as a 'musical nation' arose and became embedded in popular consciousness.From early medieval bards to the bands of the 'Cool Cymru' era, this book looks at Welsh musical practices and traditions, the forces that have influenced and directed them, and the ways in which the idea of Wales as a 'musical nation' has been formed and embedded in popular consciousness in Wales and beyond. Beginning with early medieval descriptions of musical life in Wales, the book provides both an overarching study of Welsh music history and detailed consideration of the ideas, beliefs, practices and institutions that shaped it. Topics include the eisteddfod, the church and the chapel, the influence of the Welsh language and Welsh cultural traditions, the scholarship of the Celtic Revival and the folk song movement, the impacts of industrialization and digitization, and exposure to broader trends in popular culture, including commercial popular music and sport.