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Musical Director:   Owain Gethin Davies

Owain Gethin started his music career as a young Pianist, Organist and Harpist, playing the piano from an early age. He started performing very young and competed in numerous Eisteddfodau and competitions. Music continued to flourish at his secondary school, Ysgol y Creuddyn, and resulted in him gaining an A Level in Music and gained a performing scholarship to Bangor University to study Music. During his teenage years he was an accompanist with the Maelgwn Male Voice Choir where he had the opportunity to accompany the choir in several local concerts and to travel with the choir on a tour of Canada in 1997.

During his time at Bangor University he started to conduct the University Welsh Student Union Mixed Choir. Under his leadership the choir won the main mixed choir competition at the Urdd National Eisteddfod in the year 2000. The choir went on to perform in other festivals and also appeared on S4C under his leadership.

Owain Gethin graduated from Bangor University in 2001 with a BMus degree and his final performance recital was on the Harp after studying under the renowned harpist Elinor Bennett. Following his degree he stayed in Bangor University to complete his Post Graduate Certificate in Education. This he completed in 2002 and received his first permanent music teaching post in Ysgol Syr Hugh Owen, Caernarfon. During this time he conducted ‘Côr Cofnod’ a Female Choir in the town who had 60 members, they travelled to perform across the UK and took part in numerous local charity events.

In 2005 he was promoted to a Head of Music post in his old secondary school back in his home town in Ysgol y Creuddyn. During his time in the music department the school won numerous choral competitions in the Urdd National Eisteddfod. The most prominent being his Senior Boys Choir who won the Boys Choir competition in 2008 singing a welsh version of ‘You raise me up’ this can be found on YouTube (https://youtu.be/zyrefexEY0w) and has had over 11,000 hits.

His career has flourished as a music consultant in education and he is in high demand throughout Wales for training events and for authoring music resources for schools. In 2009 he was given the opportunity to develop the singing resources for the CânSing (National Singing programme for Wales) website – www.cansing.org.uk .

CânSing has been a driving force in the delivery of Music education in Primary and Secondary Schools across Wales, and numerous teachers would agree that it is an invaluable resource to deliver music in the classroom and that the learners get a high quality music education. Owain Gethin has authored the arrangements of the songs plus all of the written resource. He has also authored the CânSing Toolkit for teachers; teachers and other practitioners again have welcomed this across Wales.

Following his work with CânSing Gethin was invited in 2014 to be part of a global project, which is the World Voice project, part of the British Council. He was made a Singing Leader for Wales and was invited to provide training for teachers across the United Kingdom and to visit Sudan to work with young people in this country as part of the British Councils work.

Since January 2017 Owain Gethin is Deputy Head in Ysgol y Creuddyn. When he isn’t conducting he likes to accompany his former pupils and friends in local concerts, go to the gym, walk in the local area and he plays the organ in his church Capel Seilo in Llandudno. He took up the post as Musical Director of the Colwyn Male Voice Choir in January 2020. His belief is that choral singing is a universal language that has the power to bring people together in times of need is infectious.

Owain Gethin Davies

Dechreuodd Owain Gethin ei yrfa gerddorol fel Pianydd, Organydd a Thelynor ifanc, dechreuodd chwarae’r piano o oedran ifanc. Dechreuodd berfformio’n ifanc iawn a chystadlu mewn nifer o Eisteddfodau a chystadlaethau. Parhaodd hyn i ffynnu yn ei ysgol uwchradd, Ysgol y Creuddyn, lle derbyniodd Lefel A mewn Cerddoriaeth ac ennill ysgoloriaeth berfformio i Brifysgol Bangor i astudio Cerddoriaeth. Tra yn ei arddegau bu yn gyfeilydd gyda Côr meibion Maelgwn lle cafodd gyfle i gyfeilio mewn sawl cyngerdd lleol a theithio gyda’r côr ar daith o amgylch Canada yn 1997.

Yn ystod ei amser ym Mhrifysgol Bangor dechreuodd arwain Côr Cymysg Undeb Myfyrwyr Cymraeg y Brifysgol. O dan ei arweinyddiaeth enillodd y côr brif gystadleuaeth y côr cymysg yn Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Urdd yn y flwyddyn 2000. Aeth y côr ymlaen i berfformio mewn cystadleuthau eraill a hefyd ymddangos ar S4C o dan ei arweinyddiaeth.

Graddiodd Owain Gethin o Brifysgol Bangor yn 2001 gyda gradd BMus ac roedd ei ddatganiad perfformiad olaf ar y Delyn yn dilyn astudio o dan law y delynores enwog Elinor Bennett. Yn dilyn ei radd arhosodd ym Mhrifysgol Bangor i gwblhau ei Dystysgrif Ôl-raddedig mewn Addysg. Cwblhaodd yn 2002 a derbyniodd ei swydd ddysgu gerddoriaeth barhaol gyntaf yn Ysgol Syr Hugh Owen, Caernarfon. Yn ystod yr amser hwn death yn arweinydd Côr merched yn y dref ‘Côr Cofnod’ a oedd â 60 o aelodau, teithiodd y côr i berfformio ledled y DU a chymryd rhan mewn nifer o ddigwyddiadau elusennol lleol.

Yn 2005 cafodd ei ddyrchafu i swydd Pennaeth Cerdd yn ei hen ysgol uwchradd yn ôl yn ei dref enedigol yn Ysgol y Creuddyn. Yn ystod ei amser yn yr adran gerddoriaeth enillodd yr ysgol nifer o gystadlaethau corawl yn Eisteddfod Genedlaethol yr Urdd. Yr amlycaf yw ei Gôr Bechgyn Hŷn a enillodd gystadleuaeth y Côr Bechgyn yn 2008 yn canu fersiwn Gymraeg o ‘Dyrchefir fi’ (you raise me up) sydd ar YouTube (https://youtu.be/zyrefexEY0w) ac mae wedi cael dros 11,000 yn ei wylio.

Mae ei yrfa wedi ffynnu fel ymgynghorydd cerdd mewn addysg ac mae galw mawr amdano ledled Cymru mewn digwyddiadau hyfforddi ac am ei wasanaeth I awduro adnoddau cerdd ar gyfer ysgolion. Yn 2009 cafodd gyfle i ddatblygu’r adnoddau canu ar gyfer gwefan CânSing (rhaglen Ganu Genedlaethol Cymru) – www.cansing.org.uk.

Mae CânSing wedi bod yn bwyisg wrth ddarparu addysg Gerdd yn Ysgolion Cynradd ac Uwchradd ledled Cymru, a byddai nifer o athrawon yn cytuno ei fod yn adnodd amhrisiadwy i gyflwyno cerddoriaeth yn yr ystafell ddosbarth fel bod y dysgwyr yn cael addysg gerddoriaeth o ansawdd uchel. Mae trefniannau y caneuon a’r holl adnodd ysgrifenedig wedi’i ysgrifennu gan Owain Gethin. Mae hefyd wedi ysgrifennu Pecyn Cymorth CânSing i athrawon, mae hwn eto wedi cael ei groesawu gan athrawon ac ymarferwyr eraill ledled Cymru.

Yn dilyn ei waith gyda CânSing gwahoddwyd Gethin yn 2014 i fod yn rhan o brosiect byd-eang sef prosiect Llais y Byd, sy’n rhan o’r Cyngor Prydeinig. Fe’i gwnaed yn Arweinydd Canu i Gymru a gwahoddwyd ef i ddarparu hyfforddiant i athrawon ledled y Deyrnas Unedig ac i ymweld â Sudan i weithio gyda phobl ifanc yn y wlad fel rhan o waith y Cyngor Prydeinig.

Ers mis Ionawr 2017 mae Owain Gethin yn Ddirprwy Bennaeth yn Ysgol y Creuddyn. Pan nad yw’n arwain mae’n hoffi cyfeilio i’w gyn-ddisgyblion a’i ffrindiau mewn cyngherddau lleol, mynd i’r gampfa, cerdded yn yr ardal leol ac mae’n chwarae’r organ yn ei eglwys Capel Seilo yn Llandudno. Dechreuodd yn y swydd fel Cyfarwyddwr Cerdd Côr Meibion ​​Colwyn ym mis Ionawr 2020. Ei gred yw bod canu corawl yn iaith fyd-eang sydd â’r pŵer i ddod â phobl ynghyd ar adegau o angen heintus.

Accompanists

Anne Levitt

Anne Levitt

Since graduating with a music degree from UEA, Anne has covered the musical landscape in many forms: from specialising in the Harpsichord continuo to being the lead vocalist in a Big Band. Along the way she has been an accompanist, musical director and vocal cosh for a number of musical theatre companies.

Back in 2004 whilst living in West Yorkshire she was invited to be the accompanist for the New Mill Male Voice Choir, a position she held for twelve years.

She moved back home to Wales intent on retiring. However a chance meeting with a member of Cor Meibion Colwyn resulted in her becoming a member of their accompanist team.

 

 

 

 

 

Mary Darling

Mary Darling

 

 

 

 

 

 

Richard Hibbs

Richard Hibbs

Richard Hibbs

Richard started playing the piano when he was seven, encouraged by his parents’ love of classical music.  He was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, where he continued to devote much of his time to musical endeavour and performed the Haydn D major concerto in 1983.  In 1990 he was fortunate to become a pupil of Alfred Kitchin (1910-2003), who had himself studied in Vienna with Weingarten, a pupil of Liszt.  Richard performed Beethoven’s Choral Fantasie in 2003 with the St Asaph Choral Society under the baton of Paul Harvey.  In 2010 he won the Barlow Cup in the open composition class at the Chester Festival with an a capella setting of the Sanctus.

Richard a well as being accompanist for Cor Meibion Colwyn, is the Principal Guest Conductor of the Amici del Canto Chamber Choir and orchestra with whom he has toured extensively in Italy and Germany.

 

 

 

 

The choir highlights for 2023 involved these events.

It had been a very successful 2023 for the choir.             On the 10th of December at the invitation of Father Vimal and the Parishioners of St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Colwyn Bay. With Quentin … Read More

Our Next Event a St David’s Day Concert 1st March St John’s Church, Mostyn Street, Llandudno

Confirmed that Holywell Town Band with whom we had a great Christmas concert in Old Colwyn will be joining us for our St David’s Day Concert on Friday the 1st of March at St John’s Church Llandudno. A charity event … Read More

Simplicity

The choir rehearses each Sunday and Wednesday evening between 7.30 pm and 9.00 pm at the Old Colwyn Community Centre behind the Plough Inn on the main street. If you have a genuine interest in choral singing then you are more than welcome to come along and meet us ... Read More