OWEN
,
WILLIAM
(
1830
-
1865
),
musician
;
b.
11 May 1830
at
Tremadoc, Caerns.
, the son of
William
and
Beti
Owen
. He was educated at the British school,
Pont-ynys-galch
,
Portmadoc;
later, he received some instruction from
Owen
Griffith
,
Garn Dolbenmaen
. He and his brother
carried on the work followed by the father, who had been connected with the
timber trade
. He was given lessons in
organ-playing
by a
Mrs.
Coventry
(the
earl of Coventry
's niece) who
kept a private school
at
Tremadoc
. Among his eisteddfod successes were — an anthem, ‘
Can Moses a Chân yr Oen
,’ at the
Bethesda eisteddfod
of
1851
, and, in the same year, at
Eisteddfod Madog
, an anthem ‘
Gweddi Habacuc
.’ An anthem by him to the words beginning ‘
Wrth afonydd Babilon
’ was published; several carols and hymn-tunes composed by him were also published — e.g. the hymn-tune ‘
Porthmadog
’ appeared in
Caniadau y Cysegr a'r Teulu
,
1865
. He d.
2 Aug. 1865
, and was buried in
Penmorfa
churchyard.
Bibliography:
-
Y Cerddor
,
July 1893
;
-
Y Cerddor Cymreig
, 1861-1873
, Nos. 64 and 65;
-
M. O. Jones
,
Bywgraffiaeth Cerddorion Cymreig
,
National Eisteddfod Association publication, 1890
.
Author:
Robert David Griffith, M.A., (1877-1958), Old Colwyn
