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In May 2001 Côr Meibion Dowlais once more broke new ground by undertaking their first concert tour to Northern Cyprus. Indeed it was the first visit by any choir from the U.K. to this part of Cyprus. The choir was invited by The Friends of Music Association of the TRNC to be part of their Annual Music Festival, which drew artists from as far apart as Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Germany, Japan, Russia, and the U.S.
The choir, under the direction of its then Musical Director, Gareth Ellis, and accompanied by our present Musical Director, Stewart Roberts, gave concerts at The University of the Eastern Mediterranean at Nicosia, at the beautiful Abbey at Bellapais, and at the Cultural Centre at Güzelyurt. The widely varied programmes included many Welsh pieces, much to the enjoyment of the ex patriots in the audiences, as well as pieces in English, Italian and French. The choir was complemented by the beautiful soprano voice of its soloist for the tour, Miss Carmen Cowling, who performed to much acclaim at each concert, and who was accompanied by David Last. One of the many highlights of the concerts was the beautifully haunting performance of an arrangement of the folk song Scarborough Fair, made famous by Simon and Garfunkel, in which Carmen sang with the choir.
The choir was very lucky to be able to take two such accomplished pianists on tour, and each concert commenced with a medley, played as a piano duet, of Welsh and Turkish pieces, arranged by Stewart and David, including both National Anthems, while the choir mounted the stage. Every concert was received with great acclaim, with final standing ovations at each one, and the choir immediately received invitations to return to future festivals. A special moment at the end of each concert was when young ladies came on to the stage and presented a red rose to each chorister. This was an indication of the friendliness of the people of Northern Cyprus towards this Welsh choir.
The choir was based at the lovely Riverside Holiday Village, in the little village of Alsancak, about 7 miles west of Kyrenia, a beautiful setting, full of lemon and orange groves and colourful flowers of all kinds. During their week-long tour, the choir experienced a typical Turkish Evening entertainment, including a Turkish instrumental quartet, folk dancing, folk songs, and of course the obligatory belly dancer. They also enjoyed a day-long boat trip along the beautiful north coast of the island aboard The Neptune, a genuine three-masted schooner, with swimming off the boat in the crystal-clear waters of the bays. Visits were made to Famagusta and the ancient amphitheatre at Salamis, where the choir gave an impromptu performance, and to the split town of Nicosia. Because time was so short, and there would not be enough time to get around the whole area, the choir was asked on one evening to split into three groups to entertain guests at three different restaurants. Although rather a tall order, the choir rose to the occasion, and the groups were greeted with great enthusiasm at all the venues.
The harbour at Kyrenia was a favourite place for an evening meal, with the lights of the many restaurants and bars mingling with those of the boats, and the sounds of Welsh singing floating into the night air. All the ingredients for a magical atmosphere.
The choir is indebted to the Ministry of Culture of the TRNC, who provided all their transport during the tour as well as the publicity for all the concerts and the meals following the concerts. They are grateful too, to Efes and to Pepsi, for sponsoring the drinks during the boat trip. And last, but not least, they are indebted to the people of Northern Cyprus for their wonderful friendship and hospitality, and especially to Michelle and Ken Massey, for their invaluable help with the organisation of the tour from the Cyprus end.
A recent Concert Tour was to Cuneo in the region of Piemonte, Italy. We were there between the 5th and 12th June 1999 and gave concerts in Cuneo, Caraglio and Mondovi. It was a most successful tour in all respects. Musically, we were very well received by all our audiences, as borne out by the reports in the local Italian newspapers, and by letters sent from Italy to the Merthyr Express.
Our guest soprano soloist, Joyce Storr, produced stunning performances at each concert, receiving critical acclaim from all quarters.
The social side of the tour was as excellent as ever, and we are very grateful to our good friend, John Grist, of the Cambridge School of English in Cuneo, for obtaining for us free use of the local swimming pool for the duration of our stay. Indeed, we are grateful to him for all the hard work he did on our behalf in Italy which helped to make the tour such a great success. We are also indebted to Anna Carasso Cavalleri and Donna Chierando for their friendship and help during our stay, and to Signore Elio Rostagno, Consigliere Maurizio Davico and Consigliere Fabrizio Pellegrino for their help with concert arrangements.
Our thanks must also be given to the manager and staff of the Hotel Lovera Palace in Cuneo, a beautiful and elegant hotel, and our home for the duration of the tour. Nothing was too much trouble for them, and our every need was catered for. They even laid on free transport from the hotel to each of our concerts.
Help with translations for the tour brochure was provided by Janet Erten, Signore D Casetta Italian Vice Console in Cardiff, Signore Mario Moruzzi, Signore Ino Conti and Signorina Francesca Poledri.
We are grateful, too, to the Stephens and George Print Group of Merthyr Tydfil for their generous sponsorship of our Tour Brochure, and to Signore Paul Sidoli for his generous gift.
Previous tours have been to:
Bulgaria - May 24th-31st 1980
Canada (and USA) - May 22nd-June 6th 1993
Holland - August 29th-September 2nd 1984
Ireland - May 11th-15th 1995, and May 22nd-26th 1997
Luxembourg - May23rd-28th 1975
Paris - March 15th - 19th 2005
The U.S.A May 28th-June 6th 1982 and May 19th-June 3rd 1990