Catherine Margretta Thomas: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Welsh folk dancer}} |
{{Short description|Welsh folk dancer}} |
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'''Catherine Margretta Thomas''' was a Welsh folk dancer and is known for recording the [[Welsh dance]] of the |
'''Catherine Margretta Thomas''' was a Welsh folk dancer and is known for recording the [[Welsh dance]] of the Nantgarw tradition. |
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== Early life == |
== Early life == |
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== Welsh National Folk Dance Society == |
== Welsh National Folk Dance Society == |
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Dancing had died hard if inconsistently<ref name="dawnsio-easter" /> by 1911 when Catherine Margretta Thomas' daughter, Ceinwen Thomas (later Dr. Ceinwen Thomas<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dr Ceinwen H. Thomas 1911–2008 | Hanes Plaid Cymru |url=http://www.hanesplaidcymru.org/dr-ceinwen-h-thomas-1911-2008/?lang=en}}</ref>), was born. But the influence of Nonconformism waned and by the time Ceinwen Thomas was attending [[school]] she was discussing the tradition of dancing in Nantgarw with her mother.<ref name="dawnsio-easter" /> After Ceinwen Thomas had left college she met Walter Dowding of the Welsh National Folk Dance Society. She told him about her mother's recollections of folk dancing in Nantgarw. He put her in touch with Doris Freeman. Together Catherine Margretta Thomas, Ceinwen Thomas and Doris Freeman worked to notate the dance steps from the traditional dances that Catherine Margretta Thomas could remember.<ref name="dawnsio-easter" /> These notes were then passed on to the Welsh National Folk Dance Society by Ceinwen Thomas.<ref name="session">{{cite web |title=Tom John's Rally / Comments |url=http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/6420 |publisher=thesession.org |accessdate=16 September 2011}}</ref> A complete set of the dance notation for ''Y Gaseg Eira'' was published, alongside the tune ''Ymdeithgan Gwŷr Penllyn'' (March of the Men of Penllyn), in the 1959/60 Welsh Folk Dance Magazine. |
Dancing had died hard if inconsistently<ref name="dawnsio-easter" /> by 1911 when Catherine Margretta Thomas' daughter, Ceinwen Thomas (later Dr. Ceinwen Thomas<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dr Ceinwen H. Thomas 1911–2008 | Hanes Plaid Cymru |url=http://www.hanesplaidcymru.org/dr-ceinwen-h-thomas-1911-2008/?lang=en}}</ref>), was born. But the influence of Nonconformism waned and by the time Ceinwen Thomas was attending [[school]] she was discussing the tradition of dancing in Nantgarw with her mother.<ref name="dawnsio-easter" /> After Ceinwen Thomas had left college she met Walter Dowding of the Welsh National Folk Dance Society. She told him about her mother's recollections of folk dancing in Nantgarw. He put her in touch with Doris Freeman. Together Catherine Margretta Thomas, Ceinwen Thomas and Doris Freeman worked to notate the dance steps from the traditional dances that Catherine Margretta Thomas could remember.<ref name="dawnsio-easter" /> These notes were then passed on to the Welsh National Folk Dance Society by Ceinwen Thomas.<ref name="session">{{cite web |title=Tom John's Rally / Comments |date=25 November 2006 |url=http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/6420 |publisher=thesession.org |accessdate=16 September 2011}}</ref> A complete set of the dance notation for ''Y Gaseg Eira'' was published, alongside the tune ''Ymdeithgan Gwŷr Penllyn'' (March of the Men of Penllyn), in the 1959/60 Welsh Folk Dance Magazine. |
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== Criticism == |
== Criticism == |
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There has been skepticism expressed over the claims by Dr. Ceinwen Thomas that the dances which her mother recalled were authentic and original Welsh dances reflecting a long and integral Welsh culture of folk dancing.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}} The [[BBC]] Welsh Affairs Editor [[ |
There has been skepticism expressed over the claims by Dr. Ceinwen Thomas that the dances which her mother recalled were authentic and original Welsh dances reflecting a long and integral Welsh culture of folk dancing.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}} The [[BBC]] Welsh Affairs Editor [[Vaughan Roderick]] wrote in a [[blog]] in 2009 that he doubted the history of these dances.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ffol-di-rol |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/vaughanroderick/2009/06/ffoldirol.html |publisher=BBC |language=Welsh |accessdate=16 September 2011}}</ref> He questioned why only Margretta Thomas had any recollection of these dances being performed. He wrote that his great grandfather had been a [[Minister (Christianity)|minister]] in Nantgarw in the 1880s but had not seen these dances. He linked it to a [[Romantic nationalism|romantic]] nationalist desire to create a longstanding tradition in Wales even if one had not existed in reality. |
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== References == |
== References == |
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<references /> |
<references /> |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Catherine Margretta}} |
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[[Category:Welsh |
[[Category:Welsh female dancers]] |
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[[Category:1880 births]] |
[[Category:1880 births]] |
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[[Category:20th-century deaths]] |
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[[Category:Year of death missing]] |
[[Category:Year of death missing]] |
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[[Category:People from Rhondda Cynon Taf]] |
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Latest revision as of 14:33, 14 November 2024
Catherine Margretta Thomas was a Welsh folk dancer and is known for recording the Welsh dance of the Nantgarw tradition.
Early life
[edit]Catherine Margaretta Thomas was born in 1880[1]: 31 in the village of Nantgarw. Her parents were Daniel and Hannah Davies.[2] As a child she enjoyed watching the local dances[3] as they were performed in an open space below Twyn Chapel in Caerphilly[1]: 32 and at Nantgarw and Y Groes Wen.[3] Due to the hostility of the local churches to folk dancing,[citation needed] Catherine Margretta Thomas' own mother was not keen on her daughter going to see these dances, but Catherine was able to convince her father to take her along to witness the displays. The rise of Nonconformism in Wales meant that by the time Catherine Margretta Thomas was in her teens folk dancing had practically been eradicated in Nantgarw.[3]
Welsh National Folk Dance Society
[edit]Dancing had died hard if inconsistently[3] by 1911 when Catherine Margretta Thomas' daughter, Ceinwen Thomas (later Dr. Ceinwen Thomas[4]), was born. But the influence of Nonconformism waned and by the time Ceinwen Thomas was attending school she was discussing the tradition of dancing in Nantgarw with her mother.[3] After Ceinwen Thomas had left college she met Walter Dowding of the Welsh National Folk Dance Society. She told him about her mother's recollections of folk dancing in Nantgarw. He put her in touch with Doris Freeman. Together Catherine Margretta Thomas, Ceinwen Thomas and Doris Freeman worked to notate the dance steps from the traditional dances that Catherine Margretta Thomas could remember.[3] These notes were then passed on to the Welsh National Folk Dance Society by Ceinwen Thomas.[5] A complete set of the dance notation for Y Gaseg Eira was published, alongside the tune Ymdeithgan Gwŷr Penllyn (March of the Men of Penllyn), in the 1959/60 Welsh Folk Dance Magazine.
Criticism
[edit]There has been skepticism expressed over the claims by Dr. Ceinwen Thomas that the dances which her mother recalled were authentic and original Welsh dances reflecting a long and integral Welsh culture of folk dancing.[citation needed] The BBC Welsh Affairs Editor Vaughan Roderick wrote in a blog in 2009 that he doubted the history of these dances.[6] He questioned why only Margretta Thomas had any recollection of these dances being performed. He wrote that his great grandfather had been a minister in Nantgarw in the 1880s but had not seen these dances. He linked it to a romantic nationalist desire to create a longstanding tradition in Wales even if one had not existed in reality.
References
[edit]- ^ a b Lile, Emma (1999). A Step in Time: Folk Dancing in Wales. National Museum of Wales Publications. ISBN 978-0-7200-0474-8.
- ^ "Catherine Margretta Thomas (Welsh)". dawnsio.com (in Welsh). Welsh National Folk Dance Society. Archived from the original on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f "Easter Course Address (English)". dawnsio.com. Welsh National Folk Dance Society. Archived from the original on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ^ "Dr Ceinwen H. Thomas 1911–2008 | Hanes Plaid Cymru".
- ^ "Tom John's Rally / Comments". thesession.org. 25 November 2006. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ^ "Ffol-di-rol" (in Welsh). BBC. Retrieved 16 September 2011.