Côr Godre’r Garth was founded in 1974 with the aim of boosting the Welsh language in an area which was rediscovering its Welsh identity. Welsh speakers had moved to the Pontypridd area from all parts of Wales, and the musically minded of those came together under Wil Morus Jones’s leadership. Many of those newcomers in the seventies were teachers, and by now, many of the choir’s younger members are their former pupils, having been educated in local Welsh-medium schools.

The choir won first prize at the National Eisteddfod at its first attempt, in Carmarthen in 1974. The choir continues to enjoy competing at the National Eisteddfod, winning first prize in five of the last six years in the competition for choirs with more than 45 voices. The choir has also appeared on the field at the Millennium Stadium four times, including performing with Hayley Westenra and Katherine Jenkins before the Wales v New Zealand match in November 2006.

From the very beginning, trips abroad were a vital part of the choir’s programme. Over the years the choir has visited Ireland, Florence and Brittany. Choirs have also been welcomed to Wales from Lithuania and America. The choir’s longest-standing partnership is with Liedertafel Moosburg, a choir from Bavaria in southern Germany. The connection between the choirs stretches back over 25 years, when members of both choirs stayed with each other for the first time.

Easter 2006 saw the most recent visit, when Godre’r Garth embarked on a successful tour with their current conductor, Eilir Owen Griffiths. The Liedertafel returned to Wales during Easter 2008 and we performed Schubert’s Mass in G together.

Future plans include our annual Christmas Concert at Efail Isaf, singing at the Millennium Stadium before the the Wales v France rugby international in March 2010, competing in the National Eisteddfod in Ebbw Vale and touring to Bordeaux.

Conductor - Eilir Owen Griffiths

Eilir’s enthusiasm is contagious, and the co-operation between himself and Branwen Evans, the choir’s accompanist, has enabled Godre’r Garth to maintain the very highest standards which have characterised the choir from its beginning.

Eilir Owen Griffiths has conducted Côr Godre’r Garth since 2002. He is a Music Tutor and Cultural Organiser at Trinity College Carmarthen. He is also the Artistic Director of the Trinity Arts Festival, which has the Stuart Burrows International Voice Award as its main event.

A former student of Theatre, Music and the Media at the College, he went on to study a Master’s degree in Composition at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. His composition work has brought him many accolades, and in 2008 he won the Main Composer’s Prize at the National Eisteddfod of Wales in Cardiff for Ydi? A? Fo?

Eilir has already established himself as one of Wales’s most dynamic conductors and has won many of the top competition prizes with his choirs. Apart from Godre’r Garth, he also conducts Côr CF1 and Côr y Drindod. He has also conducted the Chamber Orchestra of Wales and is a regular contributor to concert platforms and musical events in the UK. Eilir’s recordings include Côr CF1 (Sain) and Y Gair (Kissan).