Dame Shirley Bassey performing at the 2006 Faenol Festival in Bangor under very bad weather conditions.
She is wearing a fabulous Dame Shirley Bassey performing at the 2006 Faenol Festival in Bangor under very bad weather conditions.
She is wearing a fabulous new gown after selling most of her gowns for charity at Christies. Shirley jokingly referred to this gown as 'The Canary'.
The Faenol Festival (Welsh: Gŵyl y Faenol) is a music festival organised by Welsh singer Bryn Terfel and held annually on the Faenol Estate (Welsh: Y Faenol), near Y Felinheli in Gwynedd, north Wales.
The festival was launched in 2000 and traditionally takes place on August Bank Holiday weekend. It includes both classical and Welsh popular music.
In 2006 the four day festival was attended by over 35,000 people, a record figure for the event. Part 7. (last part)
Bryn Terfel Jones was born in Pantglas, North Wales, the son of a farmer (he knew of another Welsh baritone named Delme Bryn-Jones, so Terfel chose Bryn Terfel as his professional name). Terfel had an interest in and talent for music from a very young age. A family friend taught him how to sing, starting with traditional Welsh songs. After winning numerous competitions for his singing, Terfel moved to London in 1984 and entered the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, from which he graduated in 1989, winning the Gold Medal. He came in second behind Dmitri Hvorostovsky in the Cardiff BBC Singer of the World Competition the same year, though won the Lieder Prize.
Personal life:
He is married to his childhood sweetheart, Leslie; the couple have three children: Tomos, Morgan, and Deio Sion. In September 2007, Terfel withdrew to severe criticism from Covent Garden's Ring Cycle when his six-year-old son Deio required several operations on his broken finger.[9]
The family live in Bontnewydd, near Caernarfon, Gwynedd. Terfel was a leading petitioner in the creation of Bontnewydd railway station on the rebuilt Welsh Highland Railway, and in part sponsored its construction.
Honours and Awards:
Terfel has been awarded the highest honour in Wales when he was made an honorary member of the Gorsedd of Bards (white Druid robes). Created in 1792 as celebration of Welsh heritage, Gorsedd inductees are considered to have contributed zelously to Welsh culture.
In 2003, Terfel became a Commander of the British Empire, receiving the honour from the Prince of Wales. In 2006 he became the second recipient of the Queen's Medal for Music (the previous recipient was conductor Sir Charles Mackerras).
Terfel is also President of the Welsh homelessness charity Shelter Cymru.
Faenol Festival:
Starting in 2000, Terfel started the Faenol Festival near Snowdonia in Wales. Billed as "Bryn Terfel's Faenol Festival" (often referred to as "BrynFest" or known locally in Welsh as "Gŵyl Y Faenol"), it turned into an annual music festival featuring internationally famous opera singers as well as popular Welsh artists. In the same year he released We'll Keep a Welcome - The Welsh Album, an anthology of favourite traditional songs.
Lyrics I am what I am:
I am what I am
I am my own special creation
So come take a look
Give me the hook or the ovation
It's my world that I want to have a little pride in
My world and it's not a place I have to hide in
Life's not worth a damn till you can say
Hey world I am what I am
I am what I am
I don't want praise
I don't want pity
I bang my own drum
Some think it's noise
I think it's pretty
And so what if I love each feather and each spangle
Why not try and see things from a different angle
Your life is a sham till you can say
Hey world I am what I am
I am what I am
And what I am needs no excuses
I deal my own deck
Sometimes the ace
Sometimes the deuces
It's my life and there's no return and no deposit
One life, so it's time to open up your closet
Life's not worth a damn till you can say
Hey world I am what I am
(Transcribed by Roman)
Lyrics We'll keep a welcome:
Far away a voice is calling
Bells of memory chime
Come home again,come home again
They call through the oceans of time
We'll keep a welcome in the hillside
We'll keep a welcome in the Vales
This land you knew will still be singing
When you come home again to Wales
This land of song will keep a welcome
And with a love that never fails
We'll kiss away each hour of hiraeth
When you come home again to Wales
We'll keep a welcome in the hillside
We'll keep a welcome in the Vales
This land you knew will still be singing
When you come home again to Wales
This land of song will keep a welcome
And with a love that never fails
We'll kiss away each hour of hiraeth
When you come home again to Wales
We'll kiss away each hour of hiraeth
When you come home again to Wales
Tags: shirley bassey mike dixon faenol lock stock and barrel records decca bangor cymru wales bryn terfel Wereldmuziek
