05.12.2019

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Erthygl i’r Wasg Press Release Sain yn dathlu hanner canrif o hanes cerddoriaeth Cymru

“Gwaddol Sain ydi y byd pop Cymraeg; does ‘na’m dowt am hynna. Nhw oedd y bechgyn ifanc brwdfrydig ‘ma efo’r cŵl ffactor oedd wedi denu’r holl grwpiau ‘ma i recordio iddyn nhw” meddai’r gantores a’r cyflwynydd Caryl Parry Jones.

Mae Sain, cwmni recordiau mwyaf Cymru wedi rhoi llwyfan arbennig i gerddoriaeth Gymraeg, ac wedi darparu cyfeiliant i fywydau pobl Cymru ers diwedd y 1960au. Eleni, mae’n dathlu’r garreg filltir o 50 mlynedd ers i Dafydd Iwan a Huw Jones sefydlu’r label. Bydd rhaglen arbennig, Sain yn 50, a ddarlledir ar S4C ar 15 Rhagfyr, yn ein tywys ar siwrnai nostalgig drwy archif y traciau sy’n sain i gyfnodau amrywiol yn ein hanes, gan ddod ag atgofion yr hanner canrif ddiwethaf yn fyw.

Cawn berfformiadau eiconig o’r archif, a chyfweliadau gydag enwau mawr y byd cerddoriaeth sy’n rhoi darlun hwyliog a lliwgar o ddatblygiad y byd adloniant Cymraeg.

Mae sêr amlycaf byd pop Cymraeg i gyd wedi recordio gyda Sain; yn eu mysg mae Meic Stevens, Edward H, Geraint Jarman, Heather Jones, Bando, Elin Fflur, Swnami a Lleuwen Steffan a’r cantorion clasurol Aled Jones a Bryn Terfel. Yn fwy diweddar grwpiau fel Catatonia, Anrhefn, Anweledig, Big Leaves a Bryn Fôn a’r Band, a hynny o dan Crai, label amgen y cwmni.

Mae stori Sain yn dechrau yn y 60au - amser newid a chyffro led led y byd - yn gerddorol ac yn wleidyddol. Ac yma yng Nghymru, roedd brwydr yr iaith wedi tanio ysbryd chwyldroadol ymysg y bobl ifanc. Ac roedd hyn yn cael ei adlewyrchu yn Sain, wrth i’r record gyntaf, Dŵr gan Huw Jones, gyfeirio at hanes boddi Tryweryn:

“Nid caneuon serch fel caneuon pop y 60au roeddech chi’n canu ond caneuon am bynciau’r dydd. A phynciau mawr y dydd yng Nghymru oedd pethau fel brwydr yr iaith a Thryweryn” meddai Huw Jones.

“Ro’n i’n ymwybodol bod recordiau Cymraeg yn gyffredinol jest ddim yn swnio cystal â recordiau Saesneg. Ag o’n i ddim yn deall pam bod rhaid iddi fod felly. Ro’n i eisiau i fy record nesa’ swnio’n dda,” ychwanega.

“Roedd y gerddoriaeth yn gerbyd i’r ysbryd newydd ‘ma,” meddai Dafydd Iwan. “Mae’r diolch am sefydlu’r cwmni i’r diweddar Brian Morgan Evans. Mi roddodd o fenthyciad o £500 i ni, ag i Huw Jones y myfyriwr ac i minnau’n ddi-waith roedd £500 yn ffortiwn - dyma chi filing cabinet a dyma chi ffôn a dyma chi stafell yn Ffordd Ninian yng Nghaerdydd - fanna ddechreuon ni”.

O senglau i LPs ac o vinyl i CDs, mae newidiadau sylweddol wedi digwydd i dechnoleg gwrando ar gerddoriaeth dros y blynyddoedd, a sawl cwmni recordiau rhyngwladol wedi mynd i’r gwellt wrth wynebu’r heriau hyn. Mae Sain, fodd bynnag yn dathlu’r ffaith ei fod wedi arloesi ac addasu dros y degawdau fel esbonia Huw Jones:

“Yr hen air Yma o Hyd; wel, mae rhywun yn gorfod ymfalchïo yn hynny o beth, ond peidio bodloni ar hynny – dyna’r peth – mae’n rhaid hefyd parhau i symud ymlaen, wynebu heriau, tra’n ymfalchïo yn beth sydd wedi cael ei gyflawni ddoe”.

Sain yn 50 Nos Sul 15 Rhagfyr, 8.00 S4C Ar alw: S4C Clic; BBC iPlayer a llwyfannau eraill Is-deitlau Saesneg ar gael Cynhyrchiad BBC Studios ar gyfer S4C

05.12.2019

Heledd Williams Cyswllt Contact Ffôn Phone 01286 674622

Erthygl i’r Wasg Press Release

Sain – celebrating half a century of Welsh music

“The Welsh language pop scene is Sain’s legacy; there’s no doubt about that. They were the exciting young dudes with cool factor that attracted all these groups to record with them,” said the singer and presenter Caryl Parry Jones.

Sain, Wales’s biggest record company has given a special platform for Welsh music and has provided the soundtrack to the lives of people in Wales since the end of the 1960s. This year, they are celebrating a milestone of 50 years since Dafydd Iwan and Huw Jones established the label.

Sain yn 50, a special programme which will be broadcast on 15 December, will take us on a nostalgic journey through the music of various periods in our history, bringing the memories of the last half a century alive. The documentary will include iconic archive performances and interviews with big names from the world of music, to chart the colourful story behind the development of the Welsh language entertainment industry.

The biggest names from the Welsh music scene have all recorded with Sain, including; Meic Stevens, Edward H, Geraint Jarman, Heather Jones, Bando, Elin Fflur, Swnami and Lleuwen Steffan, as well as classical singers Aled Jones and Bryn Terfel. More recently, bands such as Catatonia, Anrhefn, Anweledig, Big Leaves a Bryn Fôn a’r Band, who have recorded under the company’s alternative music label, Crai.

The story begins at the start of the ‘60s – a time of change across the world – both musically and politically. Here in Wales, the battle to protect the language sparked a sense of rebellion and revolution among the younger generation. This feeling was encapsulated perfectly by Sain, as they released Huw Jones’s Dŵr as the label’s first single, a song referring to the drowning of Tryweryn:

"Unlike a lot of pop music in the 60s, we were not singing love songs, we were signing about the subjects of the day. And at that time in Wales, those subjects were things like the battle for the Welsh language and Tryweryn," said Huw Jones.

"I was aware that Welsh records generally did not sound as good as English records. I didn’t understand why that had to be so. I wanted my next record to sound good," he added.

"The music was a vehicle to this new spirit," said Dafydd Iwan. "It’s the late Brian Morgan Evans who should be thanked for setting up the company. He gave us a loan of £500 and to Huw, a student, and I, unemployed at the time, £500 was a fortune – ‘here is your filing cabinet, here is your phone and here is your room on Ninian Road in Cardiff’ – that’s where it began."

From singles to LPs and from vinyl to CDs, there have been significant changes in how people listen to music over the years, and many record labels have been unable to cope with those

challenges. Sain however, have adapted and pioneered over the decades, as Huw Jones explains:

"As the song goes, Yma o Hyd; well, you have to take pride in the fact that we are still here, but we can’t be content with that – we have to continue moving forward and face the challenges, but still acknowledge and celebrate what was achieved yesterday."

Sain yn 50 Sunday 15 December, 8.00 S4C English subtitles available Available to watch on-demand at S4C Clic, iPlayer and other platforms A BBC Studios production for S4C