We are a Welsh male voice choir, founded in 1966. The Gwalia Singers quickly gained the reputation of being a small, successful choir with a strong sense of 'belonging'. Although the years since have seen some big changes in the choir's circumstances, the essentials remain. We are still (and will remain) a small choir of around 45 voices, we still draw our members from a wide range of backgrounds and geographical locations, we are still successful in local, national and international competitions and we still like to feel that a Gwalia has three main priorities in life - his family, his work and the choir (in that order).

Rehearsals

Rehearsals are currently held every Tuesday evening at 7.15pm in the Swansea Yacht and Sub Aqua Club at Swansea Marina (map). Feel free to drop in! Although we sing some songs in Welsh (as well as a few in other languages), most are in English. All ages and all abilities are welcome to come and listen and/or join, especially if you enjoy singing as much as we do!

Why "Gwalia"?

Wales is one of the four countries that make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Although officially a principality (the largest principality in the world), it has its own language (Welsh) and, since 1955, its own capital city (Cardiff). The word "Wales" comes from the plural of the old English word wealh, and literally means "foreigners". Latin forms of "Wales" include Wallia and Gwalia.

Swansea

Swansea is thought to have been founded by the Viking King of Denmark, Sweyn Forkbeard, who conquered the Anglo-Saxons in 1013. The name Swansea probably comes from a corruption of Sweyn, "Sven", and an old Norse word for inlet, "sey". The Welsh word for the city is Abertawe which means "mouth of the Tawe". Swansea is the 2nd largest city in Wales. It is near the beautiful Gower coast and about 30 miles from the Brecon Beacons national park and black mountains. Apart from being the home of the Gwalia Singers, it is also notable for being the birthplace of Dylan Thomas and Catherine Zeta Jones.

Did you know...

One of the most heavily requested records every Christmas in the USA is 'Stop The Cavalry'. However, the version requested is not the one by Jona Lewie that you may be familiar with. It is, in fact, the version recorded about a year later by the Cory Band with the Gwalia Singers. It is quite possibly the most popular song ever by an artist who never had a charted recording - single, album or otherwise.

Click here to hear it. Unfortunately we don't have any copies for sale, but CDs can be purchased from www.silverplatters.com and it is available for download on iTunes.