Having sung at every Eisteddfod for sixty years, the popular folk singer Dafydd Iwan has performed on the Maes Stage for the last time
Dafydd and his talented band took to the stage on Sunday afternoon, with thousands of people expecting him to sing some of his favourite songs.
He said, “You have to draw the line somewhere, and I’m looking forward to enjoying many more Eisteddfods – from the back seats!”
But Dafydd emphasised that he’s not giving up singing entirely: “I know it’s a bit of a joke that I say I’m going to stop singing. I’ve been trying to retire for years! But I’m stopping singing with the band.
“Don’t misunderstand – I enjoy singing with the band, and I have a wonderful time performing with them behind me. But I felt it was appropriate now to stop the big evening shows.
It’s starting to become a burden – the late nights and all the arrangements to get everyone together. So, after August, I’ll be singing solo, with guitar accompaniment – a kind of talk and song format,” he said.
Dafydd was determined to make the final performance on the National Eisteddfod stage a memorable one, “I’ve enjoyed performing on Llwyfan y Maes, and I have very happy memories of the huge crowd that came to the Maes in Tregaron.
“That was the first Eisteddfod after the coronavirus pandemic, and after Wales battled through to the final rounds of the World Cup.
“There were a lot of young people in the audience – and they knew the words to my songs. It was a very special occasion that remains vivid in my memory,” said Dafydd.
Reflecting on past Eisteddfods, Dafydd said that the National Eisteddfod in Newtown in 1965 was the first he performed at: “That was a memorable Eisteddfod. For some reason, I was staying in a school in Machynlleth.
“Canvas beds were set up in classrooms, and people were sleeping in the rooms. Among those there were Waldo Williams and Eirwyn Pontshân.
“Those were informal and unofficial performances – singing solo with the guitar around the Eisteddfod Maes. It was something similar for a few years.
“The pattern in the Pavilion back then was a classical concert after the competitions ended for the day.
"I saw an opportunity, with others, to organize something more experimental – using the Pavilion to hold cheerful evenings and folk singing gatherings after the concert.
“At the Ammanford Eisteddfod in 1970, something a bit different was organised. Peintio'r Byd yn Wyrdd was the title of a show of songs with a kind of story – held late in the Pavilion.
“There were problems, certainly – the Pavilion was cold – but because it was something new, the place was full and we had a lot of fun.”
In the early 70s, Cymdeithas yr Iaith (the Welsh Language Society) organised musical evenings for young people, and Dafydd took part in many of them.
One of the most famous was Tafodau Tân in Corwen Pavilion during the National Eisteddfod in Ruthin in 1973. That evening was recorded by Sain Record Company. Four songs by Dafydd are on the record: the folk song Mi Welais, and to close the evening – Y Wên Na Phyla Amser, Pam Fod Eira’n Wyn, and the anthemic I’r Gad.
Since then, Dafydd has written many anthemic ballads and satirical songs with a political edge. And although Dafydd and the band won’t be performing on the Maes Stage next year – his music Yma o Hyd will live on!