The Team
Musical Director: D. Huw Morgan
BA (Mus), MA Ed. Distinction, FHEA, FNCM, LLCM, ALCM, Dip.NCM, PGCE
For over 25 years Huw has combined the roles of music educator, creator, performer and director and is delighted to be the new Musical Director of Côr Persain.
Born and raised in Merthyr Tydfil, he plays the Bass Trombone, Tuba, Piano, Organ and Percussion, as well as being an accomplished singer. He has a wealth of experience and has performed extensively as a conductor and performer throughout the UK, Europe and the United States in orchestras, brass bands and choirs. He is also in demand providing entertainment to the hospitality industry, playing the organ at weddings or conducting Gymanfaoedd Ganu.
Huw is also a decorated composer and arranger in a wide variety of idioms and styles and has many published works and commissions which are available commercially. Additionally, Huw co-founded, managed and performed with Only Men Aloud! and Serendipity Singers, working under the direction of conductors such as Sir Andrew Davies, Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Karl Jenkins, Sir Mark Elder and David Charles Abell.
Huw relishes the opportunity to work in a variety of contexts from musical theatre to oratorio and from brass bands to rock concerts. More recent projects have included Dolly Parton’s ‘9 To 5 The Musical’, ‘We Will Rock You’ by Queen and Ben Elton, Handel’s 'Messiah', and a tribute evenings to the Sex Pistols, Metallica and Pink Floyd! He has conducted in contrasting venues such as the Principality Stadium, Millennium Centre and St David’s Hall, Cardiff, the Brangwyn Hall, Grand Theatre and Swansea.com Stadium, Swansea, Symphony Hall, Birmingham and the Royal Albert Hall, London.
Along with his duties as Programme Leader and Lecturer on a music performance and production HND/Degree course, Huw is Musical Director of Côr Meibion Maesteg A'r Cylch.
Ers dros 25 mlynedd, mae Huw wedi cyfuno rolau addysgwr, crëwr, perfformiwr a chyfarwyddwr cerddoriaeth ac mae'n falch iawn i gael y cyfle i gymryd rôl Cyfarwyddwr Cerdd gyda Chôr Persain.
Wedi'i eni a'i fagu ym Merthyr Tudful, mae'n chwarae'r trombon fas, tiwba, piano, organ ac offerynau taro amrywiol, yn ogystal â bod yn ganwr medrus. Mae ganddo gyfoeth o brofiad ac mae e wedi perfformio'n helaeth fel arweinydd a pherfformiwr ledled y DU, Ewrop a'r Unol Daleithiau mewn cerddorfeydd, bandiau pres a chorau. Mae e hefyd wedi darparu adloniant i'r diwydiant lletygarwch, chwarae'r organ mewn priodasau ac arwain cymanfaoedd.
Mae Huw hefyd yn gyfansoddwr ac yn drefnydd mewn amrywiaeth eang o idiomau ac arddulliau ac mae ganddo lawer o weithiau a chomisiynau cyhoeddedig sydd ar gael yn fasnachol. Yn ogystal, cyd-sefydlodd, rheolodd a pherfformiodd Huw gydag Only Men Aloud! a Serendipity Singers, yn gweithio o dan gyfarwyddyd arweinyddion fel Syr Andrew Davies, Syr Simon Rattle, Syr Karl Jenkins, Syr Mark Elder a David Charles Abell.
Mae Huw yn mwynhau'r cyfle i weithio mewn amrywiaeth o gyd-destunau o sioeau cerdd i oratorio ac o fandiau pres i gyngherddau roc. Mae ei brosiectau mwyaf diweddar yn cynnwys '9 to 5, The Musical' gan Dolly Parton, 'We Will Rock You' gan Queen a Ben Elton, 'Messiah' gan Handel a nosweithiau er teyrnged i'r Sex Pistols, Metallica a Pink Floyd! Mae e wedi arwain mewn lleoliadau cyferbyniol fel Stadiwm y Principality, Canolfan y Mileniwm a Neuadd Dewi Sant, Caerdydd, Neuadd y Brangwyn, Theatr y Grand a Stadiwm Swansea.com, Abertawe, Neuadd Symffoni Birmingham a Neuadd Brenhinol Albert, Llundain.
Ynghyd â'i ddyletswyddau fel Arweinydd Rhaglen a Darlithydd ar gwrs HND/Gradd perfformio a chynhyrchu cerddoriaeth, Huw yw Cyfarwyddwr Cerdd Côr Meibion Maesteg a'r Cylch.
I unrhyw un sydd â diddordeb mewn ymuno â'r côr, rhowch cynnig arni. Rydym yn cynyddu mewn niferoedd bob wythnos gyda'r pwyslais yn cael ei roi ar gael hwyl drwy ganu gyda'n gilydd. Ar hyn o bryd rydym yn gweithio ar Requiem gan Fauré, darn unigryw gan Robat Arwyn, rhai clasuron o'r sioeau cerdd ac, yn fuan, byddwn yn dechrau gweithio ar ganeuon adnabyddus Shirley Bassey a Bonnie Tyler. Mae rhywbeth at ddant pawb! Bydd croeso mawr i chi, hyd yn oed os na allwch ddarllen nodyn o gerddoriaeth - rydym yma i'ch helpu a'ch annog. Mae gennym leoliad ymarfer gwych, pianydd gwych, dim clyweliadau, a llawer o ffrindiau nad ydych wedi cwrdd â nhw eto.
Accompanist: Catherine Morgan
Catherine Morgan, from Rhydyfro in the Swansea Valley, has been our accompanist since 2010.
Catherine began playing the piano at an early age and was awarded a Licentiate Diploma in piano performance from the London College of Music at the age of eighteen. She also plays the pipe organ, violin and various other instruments.
Catherine achieved an MA degree in Music from Oxford University and subsequently an MA in Education from the University of Wales.
She currently holds the post of Senior Lecturer in Primary Education at the University of Wales Trinity St. David's, Carmarthen.
In her spare time, Catherine enjoys accompanying vocal and instrumental soloists in examinations, concerts and competitions.
She has also accompanied, on both piano and organ, many male voice choirs throughout South Wales.
Musical Director Emeritus: Anne Wheldon
Anne joined Cor Persain as the Musical Director in 2009. She retired from the choir in January 2022.
Anne has sung all her life but began her formal voice training at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Following this, she trained as a teacher in Dartington College of Arts.
Anne began her professional musical career as a member of the Welsh National Opera Company, and sang as a soloist for many years. In addition to continuing her personal interest in singing, Anne taught music in school and has passed on her experience as a professional singer to many young singers.
For fifteen years Anne successfully conducted the Ynysybwl Male Voice Choir until they disbanded. After conducting male voice choirs, children's choirs and mixed choirs through the years taking on a ladies choir was a new experience and a challenge which she relished. She had an extremely lively and joyful approach to choral singing, laced with a good dash of humour, and audiences had no doubt that she and the 'girls' thoroughly enjoyed entertaining.
Honorary President: Dame Nia Griffith
Dame Nia Griffith MP has been Labour MP for the Llanelli Constituency since 2005.
Whilst in Government, she served as Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) firstly to the Rt Hon. Hilary Benn, M.P., Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and then to the Rt Hon. Harriet Harman, Q.C., M. P., Leader of the House and Minister for Women and Equalities.
Since being in opposition she has been part of the shadow front bench team, firstly as a shadow business minister and then as shadow Wales minister. Her parliamentary interests include industry, renewable energy, environment, equality issues, young people, animal welfare and she is secretary of All-Party Parliamentary Steel Group. She is currently Shadow Minister for International Trade.
Before becoming an MP, after graduating in French and Italian from Oxford University, Nia taught for some twenty years in local comprehensive schools, QE High, Gowerton and Morriston, and also worked as an Estyn schools inspector.
Nia has always enjoyed music, achieving grade VIII on the clarinet and grade VI on the violin when she was at school, although she admits to not having much time to play now. When she was working as a language assistant in Italy as part of her university course, she was horrified to find that pupils’ only experience of music in school seemed to be learning pages of music history. She therefore set about acquiring recorders, and for the rest of her year there, went twice a week to teach the whole class to play. This has given her a real appreciation of the importance given in Wales to encouraging pupils to sing and play musical instruments, and she considers it a great honour to be President of Côr Persain.
She was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2022 Birthday Honours for political and public service.