Vinyl Record
Vinyl is Alive!
As part of Absent but not Forgotten and in celebration of the Halloween season, the small exhibition of records in Bara Menyn Bakehouse, Cardigan has transformed…
Absent but not Forgotten is an ongoing, experimental art project formed in 2010 by west Wales artists, Kathryn Campbell Dodd and Jacob Whittaker.
Their work explores and alludes to ideas of the paranormal, ghost hunting and the propensity to search for supernatural explanations to unexpected and unexplained phenomena.
With a particular interest in the visual aesthetics of the genre, this changing selection of records combines rock and pop, classic soundtracks, spoken word and sound effects to explore the diverse and evocative imagery in celebration of the Halloween season.
Absent but not Forgotten are also currently in the Oriel Blodau Bach gallery with a new work, Something Strange in the Neighbourhood. The exhibition runs until November 16th.
Cymanfa Ganu 1969, Morriston and the Morriston Orpheus Choir
The Cymanfa Ganu, hymn singing festival, is an enduring tradition in Wales and around the world.
‘Wherever Welshmen congregate, be it at a rugby international match in Cardiff, or as a group of exiles in some distant corner of the earth, one thing is certain – there will be singing.’ (Gwyn Griffiths, Cymanfa Ganu 1969 sleeve notes).
I have at least 12 copies of this 1969 Cymanfa Ganu Morriston record and have used it repeatedly over the years. It was a staple part of the Vinyl Altar mixes during the GWRANDO Capeli project and I used some of the covers for a work in Oriel Blodau Bach in 2015.
Formed in 1935 the Morriston Orpheus choir has an international reputation and an impressive back catalogue of recordings!
Here’s a few…
Welsh Teledisc
Used to be based at 139 Walter rd, Swansea. It was home to a credit union last time the google streetview car went by…
Swansea Records / Recordiau Abertawe
Swansea recordings include this one by Horizon Recordings ltd, Dylan Thomas House, 32 Alexandra rd
This from Swan Records Limited, Swansea. No mention of whereabouts in Swansea they were based…a fine figure of a hound though!
and these from Recordiau Mynydd Mawr, who were at 381 Gors Avenue, Cockett, Swansea
Dylan Thomas House on Alexandra rd was where the BBC recorded the 1963 version of Under Milk Wood with Richard Burton apparently. I don’t seem to have that one but found this one from 1954. (BBC article about the 1954 version)
Non-Stop Dancing
A selection of records on a moving theme https://flic.kr/s/aHsmhbkHHd
A small exhibition of records in Bara Menyn, Cardigan, August 2018.
Owners, Jack and Seren had just returned from their annual holiday at west Wales dance camp.
Picture This
Four pictures of records of Pictures at an Exhibition for a performance of Records at an Exhibition of Pictures.
Installation for a Synth night
An experiment with plastic things. Installation for Synthesthesia at Small World Theatre 2018.
Red extracts
Red Oktober
Photos by Kathryn Campbell Dodd
Many thanks to all the visitors to the installation at Punk Bikes in Cardiff last month. Working together to create a musical soviet using a collection of themed vinyl records and found audio equipment, we covered and combined a range of musical genres and created a great deal of red noise!
The images below show a few of the visitors exploring the collection, you can listen to and download the full audio files through the links at the bottom of this post.
Visitors were introduced to the collection of old audio equipment and record players – a Dansette tempo found on the road in Carmarthen; an old Ultra from an attic near Carmarthen; a BSR from a recycling centre in Devon; a vintage Bush from a boot sale near Aberporth – all output into a Yamaha compact cassette 4 track from a distant teenage friend. The 4 track then outputs to a battered Roclab 4 channel mixer (found in a skip in Bristol), along with a Sony PS-212A (given by a friend) and a Pioneer PL-111Z turntable (found on the street) running through a Numark 2 channel mixer (exchanged for a website). An old Sony PS-212 (with its own idea of what 33 or 45 is) and a vintage Technics SL-Q2 took the other channels.
The box of records was selected from a database of over 4000 by searching for the terms Soviet, Russian, and Revolution (and also included some Punk and protest song records). These were available to choose from and to play in any way visitors wished.
Many of the record players had the tone arms tied with bits of wire so they found a loop point, the Sony PS-212A played normally and the Pioneer PL-111Z played backwards.
You can listen or download the full recordings of the event here – http://jacobwhittaker.co.uk/sounds/RedOktober_part1.mp3
http://jacobwhittaker.co.uk/sounds/RedOktober_part2.mp3
The found of music 