From Wales to Patagonia: A Musical Journey

HE SPEAKS IN SPANISH

CHEERING

Autumn 2015. The BBC National Orchestra of Wales

are in Patagonia on the first leg of an ambitious South American tour.

It's 150 years since Welsh pioneers landed here.

They arrived with few possessions, but they did bring their music,

the songs they had sung in the old country.

So, what better way to mark this historic milestone

than with a shared musical celebration?

This is the first time a symphonic orchestra has come to give

a concert here.

It's an event in the history of Patagonia.

8,000 miles, 260 instruments, 70 musicians

and a world-renowned harpist.

This promises to be quite a journey.

This is like a jam session, really.

We could've gone on all night, I think.

We've been to salsa bands, we've been to old people's homes

and we've been teaching groups of children.

It's just been incredible, really incredible.

Seeing how much they enjoy us being here

and how much it means to them, it really does mean a lot.

Orchestras don't perform in this part of the world.

They have never performed in this part of the world before,

which is why it's so exciting that we're coming.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

The value of listening to these musicians perform will be

absolutely worth every single drop of energy we've put into it.

CHEERING

Like the first Welsh families who settled here on the barren Atlantic

coast in 1865, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales are pioneers.

This is the first visit to Patagonia by

an international symphony orchestra.

The trouble is, they lack a concert venue big enough to host them,

so the first challenge is to adapt an existing building.

This is an old wool warehouse on the edge of Trelew.

They've been working on it for months,

and it's certainly big enough.

But four days out from the concert,

transforming it into a performance venue is a tall order.

When I first came here, there were bales of wool on the floor

and it was grey all over, and the stage wasn't there

and there were holes in the roof, in fact, as well.

So, it's come on a long way since then, but equally,

it's not finished yet, and it's Monday and the concert's on Friday.

There are lots of questions that we don't have answers for,

and that's the state of things here in Argentina,

and that's what I'm becoming used to,

but it makes me very nervous that there are still some things,

some very big things, that aren't ready yet.

-Someone's thought about bringing in seating, have they?

-Yep.

That's the person we're meeting now.

-That was...

-Now.

-Ten minutes ago. Ten minutes ago.

This is Patagonia.

There is, undoubtedly, a little bit of a "manana mentality",

but meeting some of the technical staff,

I'm completely confident that it's all going to happen.

With the orchestra yet to arrive,

and little opportunity to test the acoustics,

it's far from certain how this huge space will shape up

as an auditorium.

You never go out on stage without that element of risk.

You don't ever really have control

and know exactly what's going to happen.

That's the thrill of live music-making.

Yeah, there are a few more variables here.

You know, we're throwing in five or six school groups,

two or three choirs,

a couple of local soloists whom we haven't auditioned yet, even.

Half Welsh, half Spanish. What's to worry about?

An advance party of a dozen musicians

has arrived for a week-long residency,

holding workshops in community centres and schools.

The children at this school are taught through the medium of Welsh.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Just the reaction from the kids is brilliant,

and I think a lot of them

haven't heard classical music or any kind of live instruments

before in school, so they're really appreciative of what we're doing.

ORCHESTRA PLAYS

It's a new experience for many adults here, too.

The music workshops will extend across the region,

including the far west of Patagonia,

lands claimed by the Welsh after they heard the native Indians' tales

of fertile valleys where the sun set.

And it's here at the foot of the Andes mountains that harpist

Catrin Finch starts her journey.

I am first time here, yeah. I didn't know what to expect, to be honest.

I mean, you get your own picture and you see footage before,

but it's never quite the same as coming and being here yourself.

It's an amazing place, you know, these amazing Andes.

Yeah, it's very inspirational.

She may be 8,000 miles from Wales, but her fame precedes her.

Catrin.

Aww! Beautiful.

Catrin will spend four days here before joining

the rest of the orchestra 400 miles to the east.

Her first session is a workshop for schoolchildren in Trevelin.

It's a chance for her family, who are travelling with her, to join in.

-Hello!

-Hello!

-Hello. Catrin.

-Hello.

CATRIN PLAYS HARP

I was watching their faces,

and it was the first time that some of them had heard a harp,

and definitely the first time that they'd heard a harp

played by a professional harpist, and just watching their faces,

it was worth every moment that we've spent trying to organise things

in the last few months.

HARP PLAYING CONTINUES

WOMAN REPLIES IN SPANISH

CHILDREN JOIN IN MELODY OF HARP

HARP ACCOMPANIES RECORDERS

I don't speak Spanish.

Not very many of them speak Welsh or English.

But we can somehow communicate through music.

The nicest thing about these kinds of projects is to be able

to share music with them,

and that process is really very fulfilling,

and if you think about the history here and, you know,

the Welsh history here,

and to think that these kids have maybe some Welsh in their blood,

so it's a great pleasure for me to be able to give them

a bit of Welsh culture, really, and some of our music.

Back over on the eastern side of Patagonia,

the orchestra's advance party

are visiting a secondary school in Trelew, and giving the pupils

their first opportunity to play alongside the professionals.

Muy bien.

OK.

Tutti.

Eh!

ORCHESTRA PLAYS

Crescendo!

Crescendo, crescendo, crescendo, crescendo!

And!

MUSIC STOPS

CONDUCTOR SPEAKS IN SPANISH

MUSICIANS CHEER

And the next workshop is drawing a big crowd.

Principal flautist Matthew Featherstone is shaking the room

with a session more associated with an urban hip-hop artist

than a classical musician. It's vocal percussion, or beatboxing.

HE BEATBOXES

CHILDREN IMITATE HIM AND GIGGLE

OK. So, three sounds.

HE IMITATES A BASS DRUM

GIRL SPEAKS IN SPANISH

-GIRL:

-Hey.

THEY ALL IMITATE DRUMS

THEY LAUGH

OK, and the second sound is T-S.

-ALL:

-Tss, tss, tss, tss, tss, tss.

OK, the third sound, it's like C-L.

-HE MAKES A THUDDING CLICK

-Easy.

THEY ALL IMITATE HIM

OK, so watch me now.

And I'm going to play you like a drum kit.

CHILDREN IMITATE DRUMS

Tss.

-CHILDREN MAKE THUDDING CLICK

-Tss.

-DRUM

-Tss.

-CLICK

-Tss.

THEY ALL SPEED UP

Good.

'It was very high-energy and they all get really involved,'

in a way, I think, that maybe UK teenagers might not, you know.

'So a good time together, yeah.'

OK, shall we go?

THEY ALL BEATBOX TOGETHER

OK, you're very good!

CHEERING

Just down the corridor,

the search is on for local talent to sing in the gala concert.

# Holl amrantau'r ser ddywedant

# Ar hyd y nos... #

'We thought it might be a good idea to find some local voices

'to sing in a rather beautiful arrangement of Ar Hyd Y Nos,'

where we've got three verses available and we thought,

"Well, maybe we could find three exceptional voices -

"any age, any shape, any size,

"as long as they can sing in tune and sing the words."

# Teulu'r nefoedd mewn tawelwch

# Ar hyd y nos. #

IN SPANISH:

Muchos gracias, senor. Tambien?

Beautiful voice.

'Every voice we've heard has qualities and colour and warmth.'

And I think we're going to be spoiled for choice.

I think we're going to have some really tough decisions to make

in the next couple of days.

Out west, in the town of Esquel, Catrin is on her way

to give a special performance for the Welsh communities of the Andes.

Few people can make the 400-mile road trip

to hear the full orchestra in Trelew,

so tonight's concert is a sell-out.

APPLAUSE

It was the first time I've seen her,

so it's been a very special and amazing night for us.

It was a privilege to be able to hear Catrin

when she is such a famous harpist,

playing for us here in Trelew and in Esquel.

It was really beautiful.

'You know, what's different about a concert like tonight

'is that you feel it's for the community.

'It's a celebration, and you feel that.'

You know, an event like tonight stays with you for much longer.

It stays with you for your life, really.

It's an experience that you don't easily forget.

Back east, too, music is making strong emotional connections.

At a home for the elderly in Trelew,

songs from the old country call to mind the Welsh colony's early days.

THEY PLAY MYFANWY

For 99-year-old Uriena Rhys Lewis,

the first settlers are a living memory.

Meanwhile, in the state capital, Rawson,

another group is bringing musical inspiration

to a school for disabled children.

-Hey!

-THEY PLAY UPBEAT MUSIC

Hey!

Hey!

Leading the activity is outreach specialist Andy Pidcock.

Hey!

Hey!

The orchestra has built up an expertise

in providing creative learning sessions like this one.

Hey!

Hey!

So we're working alongside staff.

This is quite a new way of working for them.

I think there's music goes on here because we're in South America.

But in terms of the ways that we are delivering

some of the music workshops that we're doing,

I think that will be a different and new experience for them.

They are asking us lots of questions,

so hopefully this will be something they will be able to continue

and add into their own work as well here.

Hey!

Well, I think as long as each individual child

that we're working with will remember a moment,

then that's the most important thing.

So, hopefully, each of those will go away with a moment.

CHEERING

APPLAUSE

No stay in the Andes would be complete

without a trip on the Old Patagonian Express -

the legendary steam train that departs from Esquel.

STEAM HISSES

And with Catrin on board,

this promises to be a very musical journey.

We're here on a train, through this amazing countryside.

Looking out, you've got the Andes over there.

Yeah, an incredible journey.

So I thought, you know, I should probably bring my harp. Seeing as...

Well, not MY harp. But I should probably bring A harp

so I could play a few little bits of Welsh music whilst I was there.

CATRIN PLAYS THE HARP

'I've just been playing to these wonderful people

'who are sharing the carriage with us.

'A piece by Robert ap Huw - the manuscripts of his

'are supposedly the oldest in existence in Wales,

'so I've recently started playing some of his music,

'and I find it quite interesting.

'To be honest, I've never played on a steam train before,

'so it's going down on the CV. Brilliant.'

SHE CONTINUES PLAYING

Back at the old wool warehouse in Trelew, the pressure is on.

Concert night is fast approaching.

At least the chairs have arrived!

But the venue is far from ready.

The orchestra's fixer on the ground in Argentina is Mariano Bachrach.

'It was hard work, coordinating this big tour,'

where never an orchestra of this name has been.

'The work was coordinating the cargo coming from London,

'the truck from Buenos Aires.

'Things that we have to bring, like music stands, from Buenos Aires,

'because here they don't have that many.

'We have to, you know, rent the chairs, build part of the stage.

'It's an amazing job.'

'It's been a huge amount of work to get to this point.'

It isn't quite finished. The toilets are not finished yet.

There's no toilet paper, there's no soap,

there's not enough water for people.

You know, this really is a desert of a building in a desert of a land.

And there are a number of things

that aren't as I ordinarily would want them to be.

'But I told Michael that, um...

'..here in Argentina, it's very common that we have a deadline'

and nothing happens till half an hour before

and half an hour before, we have everything on the spot.

So I think we'll have a good concert.

While they still have their work cut out at the concert venue,

the atmosphere is a lot more relaxed at Ysgol yr Hendre.

This was Patagonia's first bilingual school -

pupils here get half their education in Welsh.

For us as an orchestra,

to come to the other side of the world

and hear the Welsh language being spoken,

it's just been incredible. Really incredible.

Catrin Finch has arrived from the Andes to join her fellow musicians.

'We've been lucky enough here in Ysgol yr Hendre

'that the musicians who speak Welsh have come here.'

Because they speak Welsh,

they've been interacting with the pupils, and that's been great.

The children have been practising all of the Welsh they've got.

SHE PLAYS THE THEME FROM JAWS

-Argh!

-Argh!

LAUGHTER

SHE PLAYS DESCENDING NOTES

-Me!

-Yeah? OK.

-ALL:

-Me, me, me!

LAUGHTER

There you go.

You're probably a right-hander.

STRING SCRAPES

THEY BOTH LAUGH

TUNELESS NOTES PLAY

Hey, bravo!

TUNELESS WARBLING

LAUGHTER

THEY ALL SING IN WELSH

My girls, they're five and eight years old,

in a little Welsh school in Pontypool.

They are learning exactly the same songs

as these children are learning here in Patagonia.

SINGING CONTINUES

CHEERING

And with the concert only days away,

where better than Ysgol yr Hendre

to find young voices to sing Ar Hyd y Nos?

# Gwir brydferthwch... #

Good. OK.

HE ACCENTUATES THE LYRICS

OK? Again.

# Gwir brydferthwch... #

Three. And...

# Golau arall yw tywyllwch

# I arddangos gwir brydferthwch... #

Another Patagonian tradition - almost as important as singing -

is the Welsh tea.

It's a custom that arrived with the first settlers on the Mimosa,

and it's more popular here than back home in Wales.

CHATTER

For the musicians, it's a much-needed break.

Incredible. I haven't had it in Wales before but, um...

It's amazing to have it here for the first time.

I must say, the jams I can thoroughly recommend.

They actually taste like the jams they're supposed to.

There's a huge variety of cakes, and maybe too much sugar.

But we will see later on. Maybe we'll need it!

How about that for a tea cosy?

You know, I feel well and truly at home,

as if I was with my nan on the Marsh Road in Dinbych-y-Pysgod.

As you can see, it breaks every rule of my diet.

So, as long as you don't tell anybody about this...

It's absolutely delicious.

But it's only a short break.

Catrin's next stop is a secondary school

in one of Trelew's poorest neighbourhoods.

LATIN MUSIC PLAYS

It's a chance for her to turn her hand to some Latin American music.

CHEERING

Now it's Catrin's turn to share some folk music from Wales.

I'm teaching them a Welsh song called Ar Ben Waun Tredegar.

So I'm hoping that they can take a Welsh song

and put their stance on it and make it into, um...

you know, a Patagonian song. That's the plan.

So they're learning the chords at the moment.

THEY PLAY AR BEN WAUN TREDEGAR

They've never really heard the violins played like we do.

And they're just so enthusiastic

and we just making lots of friends, really, so it's great.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

It's just like a jam session, really.

We could have gone on all night, I think, probably, but it's...

Yeah, their rhythm is amazing

and it's what we don't have so much in Wales,

so living that rhythm is a great experience.

Many here live and breathe the songs their forefathers brought with them.

And for those too old and frail to attend the concert,

musicians are bringing Welsh tunes into their homes.

Albina Jones de Zampini is 89.

She and her daughter, Mary,

are being treated to their own private recital.

I just think about our history here in Patagonia,

all those families that came here in 1865.

And they brought the songs with them, and I think that songs...

..make you happy.

SHE SINGS ALONG

Some 15 miles from where the gala concert will be held,

the town of Gaiman is enjoying a musical celebration of its own -

a Welsh Noson Lawen.

# Dim ond calon lan all ganu

# Canu'r dydd a chanu'r nos. #

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

To hear them all singing the second verse of Calon Lan in Spanish...

They obviously do it every week.

You know, I mean, terrific. Terrific stuff.

HE BEATBOXES

# Nid wy'n gofyn bywyd moethus

# Aur y byd na'i berlau man

# Gofyn wyf am galon hapus

# Calon onest, calon lan

# Calon lan yn llawn daioni

# Tecach yw na'r lili dlos

# Dim ond calon lan all ganu

# Canu'r dydd a chanu'r nos. #

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

This is what community music-making should be all about.

It's something that I think we can take a certain pride in in Wales,

and to see it being reproduced and replicated out here

is such a pleasure.

That's what it is all about,

and then you just go and eat a couple of cows.

The evening is rounded off in style with a traditional "asado" -

meat roasted on an open fire, the Argentinian way.

Salivating!

I have never seen so much meat in all my life.

I love the way they cut it up in chunks,

because it doesn't matter how thick it is, it's all done to a T.

Oh, my God.

It would be a vegetarian's nightmare, wouldn't it?

Catrin and the orchestra are guests of Gabriel Restucha,

the Welsh-speaking mayor of Gaiman.

With the big night fast approaching,

there's time to audition one more singer

for the concert performance of Ar Hyd y Nos.

# Teulu'r nefoedd mewn tawelwch

# Ar hyd y nos. #

SHE LAUGHS

'It's a bit of a dilemma, actually.

'Every voice we've heard has real quality.'

So, actually, we've come up with a cunning plan,

which is to slightly...

re-orchestrate the Ar Hyd Y Nos version

and find a way to use every single one

of the individual voices we've heard.

The full orchestra has now arrived.

They've played in some of the world's great concert halls.

What will they make of an old wool warehouse in Patagonia?

Less than 24 hours before the gala concert,

this is Grant's first real chance

to get to grips with the acoustic in the hall.

TROMBONE ECHOES

Contra trombone, cello, bass.

Let's see how little we can get away with

to make this sforzando piano subito.

You hardly need to touch it in here, I think.

You come into a bathroom of a place like this and, um...

you fear for the worst,

with a large symphony orchestra, playing grand, dramatic repertoire.

ORCHESTRA PLAYS

I think that will be enough. I think that will be enough on here.

But, actually, I think it's taken on a life of its own, almost.

Yes, it's got a five-second echo and you can't hear

some of the detail in the middle of the textures,

but I think it sort of makes up for that

with a kind of grandiose, dramatic gesture.

The big night has finally arrived - a historic first performance

by an international symphony orchestra in Patagonia.

ORCHESTRA QUIETENS

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

And a very special moment -

a chance for local singers to take to the big stage,

backed by the orchestra and the National Youth Choir Of Wales.

# O mor siriol gwena seren

# Ar hyd y nos

# I oleuo'i chwaer ddaearen

# Ar hyd y nos

# Nos yw henaint pan ddaw cystudd

# Ond i harddu dyn a'i hwyrddydd

# Rhown ein golau gwan i'n gilydd

# Ar hyd y nos. #

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

It was a perfect night.

I thought the orchestra were on fantastic form.

You've got 2,000 people just willing them on, just loving it,

kids everywhere.

And what I think was really lovely is that, through music,

two communities, 7,000, 8,000 miles apart, totally united -

a very, very special evening.

Can't quite believe it. I've been in tears for most of the evening.

Those musicians are the best communicators I've ever met.

We're seeing everyone that we've seen in the week

has come to the concert.

It's just really nice to be able to celebrate together in this way.

I hope this is the beginning of an enduring relationship

with these groups, these people on the ground here.

And I've been going around, promising them all,

"Next time, we'll do it in Wales."

It's been really fantastic,

and I hope it's not 150 years before we get another orchestra.

CHEERING