04.11.11
Celtic Women
On Wednesday 12th October the
National Botanic Garden of Wales hosted the book and CD launch of CMW's Celtic
Women project. A wonderful afternoon of live music, song and dance demonstrated
all the hard work that had gone in to developing the book in an energetic final
performance at The Great Glasshouse.
Since March 2011, over 350 people
throughout Carmarthenshire have taken part in workshops in song writing,
poetry, music, and digital stories celebrating Celtic Women past, present and
future.
This exciting project was delivered in
partnership between Community Music Wales and freelance Creative Director,
Cheryl Beer, who lead the project. By providing access to new creative
opportunities, the project's aim was to bring the people of Carmarthenshire
communities together to work on an intergeneration piece.
Samples of the poems and lyrics, along
with illustrations by local artists are published in the Celtic Women book.
Insights into the many songs and musical pieces were edited onto a CD. Copies
were made in a limited run and can be found on the National Library of Wales'
Virtual People’s Library, as part of their Digital Heritage in the Community
project.
Creative Director, Cheryl Beer said;
"Thanks to a partnership with Community Music Wales, it has been possible
to create an amazing journey with so many local people and organisations
supporting the event. Although I knew Carmarthenshire to be a hub of
creativity, I could never have imagined that so many people of different ages
and abilities would take part".
The project has already created a legacy
with a Celtic Women Concert Series being hosted by The National Botanic Garden
of Wales starting on Sunday November 6th in The Great Glasshouse and will
continue to support women performers twice a month through to March 2012.
The project was funded by The Arts
Council of Wales Big Lottery, Welsh Government and supported locally by The
National Botanic Garden of Wales and Arts Care Gofal Celf.
