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Over the festival weekend, we’ve organised a whole range of informative, fun and inspiring workshops for anyone looking to practice their vocals under the supervision of some incredible a cappella masters. The workshops will offer festival goers the opportunity to sing together with the acts and each other in a wide range of styles from Corsican, to Welsh harmony, Georgian to Looping plus many more! Ahead of the festival we spoke with some of the workshop leaders to gain a little insight into what to expect when taking part in their sessions. Caroline Bithell will be leading workshops in Corsican and Georgian, here she tells us about where her passion for singing came from along with her intentions for the workshops: “I was born and grew up in Wales so maybe it’s not surprising that singing has always been an important part of my life. I’ve always been fascinated by other places, cultures and languages, so realising that there was this thing called ethnomusicology (or musical anthropology, bringing together music and culture) was like meeting my destiny. I got to live in Corsica with my three children while working on my PhD, which was about the revival of traditional music on

Narberth A Capella Voice Festival – an uplifting, joyous way to participate in the Arts of voice and singing – the perfect antidote to a bleak February. 15/16 Feb 2020. Span Arts is all about encouraging engagement and participation in the arts that can bring meaningful experiences, reduce rural isolation, loneliness and deprivation, boost wellbeing and enrich the lives of the people living in predominantly rural Pembrokeshire. Span Arts has gathered a plethera of examples showing how participation in community arts events can bring communities across Pembrokeshire together and boost wellbeing. Some of our most uplifting examples are the Narberth A Capella Voice Festival (NAVF), the intergenerational choir Côr Pawb and Caring Choirs project – each bring people together through song, whether in the listening or in the singing together in unison. Kirsty Martin – Workshop on Choral Activism NAVF provides a unique opportunity over a whole weekend to listen to outstanding bare voice performances and participate in signing workshops. Côr Pawb has been benefits of singing through their community singing days and performances. The Caring Choirs project brings singing into care settings around the county resulting a very special group of voices. Food for the soul. NAVF returns after

Rhagfyr 7fed, Celfyddydau Span, Waun y Dref, Arberth 10.00 am-4pm Bydd Map Digi Penfro , prosiect ‘mapio dwfn’ Sir Benfro yn dychwelyd am ddiwrnod arall o fapio cymunedol ar Ragfyr 7fed  yn Arberth. Dyma gyfle i rannu straeon a gwybodaeth am Arberth gyda’r bwriad o gofnodi gwybodaeth ar fap arlein er mwyn creu ‘map dwfn’ o’r dref a’r cyffiniau. https://deep-map.azurewebsites.net/ Mae’r term ’map dwfn’ yn cyfeirio at arfer sydd â pherthnasedd arbennig i Sir Benfro. Yn ystod gwanwyn 2002 cerddodd yr artist a chyfarwyddwr theatr Cliff McLucas (1945-2002) Llwybr Arfordir  Sir Benfro ar ei hyd gyda’r bwriad o greu Map Dwfn, yn cyfuno tirluniau gyda chyfryngau eraill yn cynnwys testun, dyddiadur, recordiadau sain a delweddau symudol ar fap aml-haen. Anogir pawb sy’n mynychu’r diwrnod yn Arberth i ddod ag eitemau megis dogfennau, ffotograffau a gwrthrychau sydd, efallai, yn cynnwys gwybodaeth am Arberth ar hyd yr oesoedd, yn ogystal â nhw eu hunain a straeon sydd ganddynt i’w hadrodd. Mewn paratoad ar gyfer y diwrnod mae Span Digidol wedi sicrhau cymorth aelodau eu Clwb Digi sydd wedi’u hyfforddi mewn technegau recordio digidol, ffotograffiaeth a sut i lwytho deunyddiau i fyny i’r map. Yn ôl maniffesto mapio McLucas “Bydd mapiau dwfn yn

The Haverfordwest lantern parade tonight!   The parade will go ahead in light rain.   However, due to poor weather we are moving the pedal powered cinema from the Castle to Haverhub so you will have a pleasant indoor cycling and viewing experience. Collect your lantern and take part from 6pm at Haverhub.   The parade will then start at 7pm from Castle Square led by Samba Doc and proceed up the castle, which will be lit.   After the parade,  we are inviting you to make your way back into the dry at Haverhub where the pedal powered cinema will still be going – as long as you are there to pedal it – so come and pedal whatever the weather and enjoy some short films inspired by the moon.   At 7pm, if there is torrential rain, we will have to cancel the parade. BUT there is still lots to do at Haverhub. And you still need to pick up your lanterns…   Remember to wear water proofs! Here is the route. This year’s parade is a bit shorter and on harder ground:  

The Haverfordwest Lantern Parade is back!  The Over the Moon Lantern and Light Parade celebrates space and the night sky, marking 50 years since the first moon landing. Several small steps through Haverfordwest, one giant parade for Pembrokeshire. 7pm. 31 October 2019 Span Arts are over the moon to announce the return of the spectacular and much-loved Haverfordwest Lantern Parade. This fantastic event brings together thousands of people from all communities across the county to celebrate life with a procession filled with light. The 2019 Lantern Parade has a new route, new lanterns, a new destination and its new theme helps to mark the 50th Anniversary of the first moon landing. The Over the Moon Lantern and Light Parade will start at Castle Square at 7pm and weave its way through the streets of the county town to Haverfordwest Castle.  The night sky will then come alive with lights from the castle reaching out into space. The event will also feature a bicycle-powered cinema, featuring short films to celebrate the moon, that stars and the Autumnal dark sky. This event is free and open to all. People wanting to taking part in the Parade are also invited to come and

Throughout this spring and summer Span Arts delivered the second community arts project embedded in the Ein Cymdogaeth Werin project.  The Preseli Poetry Slam | Slam Barddoniaeth y Preseli was a community poetry writing and performance project set in the heart of the Preseli region lead by artist Nia Lewis.  We commissioned exceptional Welsh language poet Karen Owen as the Preseli Poet who was in residence in the county for three periods in May, June and July. During her residency Karen set about inspiring the people of Pembrokeshire to pick up their pens and write about their lives in the area; their thoughts and feelings about the landscape and the people.  The resulting poems are personal, sensitive and thought-provoking reflections on Preseli life from a variety of perspectives. The project was genuinely bilingual and gave a creative platform for people to engage with the language no matter what their level of competence, it was passion and enthusiasm which came to the fore.  As Karen remarked, ‘these are all Welsh poems, no matter what language they have been written in’. ‘ Prosiect anhygoel o dda!  Really enjoyed the workshop and surprised myself by writing in Welsh for the first time in years. 

In the lead up to the gig-theatre production by Rachel Taylor-Beales we invite her to give a little insight into the back-story behind Stone’s Throw, Lament Of the Selkie. Having been a full time singer songwriter and touring artist over the last 20 years, this is my first venture into the world of theatre and I am thrilled to have received support of Arts Council Wales in order to make the piece. The idea of a collaborative storytelling piece focusing on a retelling of selkie mythology first occurred way back in 2011, when composer Gillian Stevens introduced me to the folklore tales of these shape-shifting seal folk. But this initial project was to be short lived as a few months later I was immobile and house bound, having sustained injuries to my hip and back after falling from stage while on tour in rural Italy. The fall was traumatic in itself, but what compounded it all was the fact that I was also 24 weeks pregnant when this happened. My tour colleague Dylan Fowler, told me that he’ll never forget the sound my body made as it smacked the ground- stone-marble flooring…I felt pins and needles up and down my