Gwobrau Roc a Phop BBC Radio Cymru 2002
A bit of a break with ‘tradition’ today, as there’s no way I can manage all this in Welsh - it would probably take me the best part of the next month. It’s 9pm Monday as I start to write this, listening to the Noson Wobrwyo RAP on Radio Cymru, recorded on Saturday night at Barcud studios in Caernarfon.

Have to admit, I’ve never actually been to an awards ceremony before so wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, but certainly wasn’t expecting the heating to be set to ‘arctic’. The set up was pretty much predictable though - stage, floor area with tables, gallery with punters, people with cameras everywhere, free alcohol and lots of pissed bands.

Alcatraz started the night with a set that seemed to go on forever. I have to admit I’ve never been fan of whinge-rock, and although Alcatraz do have a couple of really good songs, they chose not to play them tonight. Pity.

First award to be presented was for Best Composer. Bizarrely the only actual person to be nominated was Gai Toms (Anweledig, Mim Twm Llai). The other nominees were Maharishi (what?) and the Super Furry Animals. I’m not sure how a band can be a composer, but that didn’t matter cos Gai won. Well deserved - the man’s a damn genius anyway.

Best Live band was a toughie - Anweledig, Estella and Pep le Pew were nominated. Estella fall into the same whinge-rock niche that Alcatraz inhabit, but at least have a bit more verve. Ceri C’s a great performer and Anweledig have a fantastic onstage presence that is hard to beat. But it was the Pep boys that took the award, which was a heart-warming moment. Last year they were blagging their way into events like this, and they’ve worked their arses off over the last year so they damn well deserved to win. Besides, they’re fucking ace live.

Best Sesiwn Gang Bangor. Radio Cymru’s only just become available on Sky, so I had absolutely no idea who might win this. Nominees were Alcatraz, Spoonidols and Llwybr Llaethog, and the whinge-rockers won.

Next was best live event. Gwyl Cefni, Miri Madog or Sesiwn Fawr Dolgellau. A tent from the Sesiwn Fawr Dolgellau collected the prize. I think. I can’t rightly remember that bit too clearly.

Set by the afore-mentioned Llwybr Llaethog came next. In case you don’t know anything about this band, they’re basically a couple of blokes, I think from Cardiff, who have been doing sort of weird dance shit since the 80s. I gather they were once ground-breaking, but now they’re just dull. Oops. I don’t think I should say that cos everyone seems to love them. But really, they’re shit, they wear lab coats, and they scare me. I wonder if I should be expecting a horses head to turn up in my bed any time soon…

Best Producer of the Year - Dylan Mei, Geraint Jones, or Gorwel Owen. Despite Dyl (from Pep le Pew) being relatively new on the scene and up against the venerable Gorwel Owen, he walked off with this one too. Bargain!

Best Male Artist was to my mind a close fight between Ceri C (Anweledig) and Gruff Meredith (MC Mabon). Sadly, some bloke called Hayden Holden actually won. Who? Gruff babes, you was robbed.

Best Female Artist. Andrea Parker (Melys), Cate Timothy (Alcatraz) or Taliah. Ms Taliah won, even though no one that I spoke to had ever heard of her. Seems that the last two categories were judged by the Planed Plant team or somesuch.

Next up, a category with a really long name, something like Group wot did lots of stuff and made most progress during 2001. Bysedd Melys, Paccino or Pep le Pew. Hmm, I wonder. Really tough one that… poor old Bysedd Melys and Paccino didn’t stand a snowflake’s hope in hell, frankly. Roars of appreciation for the PLP bois now starting to get out of hand. Red wine starting to run out. White wine long gone.

Gwacamoli. Er, ok, and they’re playing a set why exactly? No offence like, lads, but get some proper songs please before you inflict your insipid attempts at music on us. I mean, ‘crys-t cwl’. What the fuck kind of lyric is that? And get your singer a bucket to carry his tunes in. Oh, and whichever one of you does BVs, please don’t. You can’t.

The next award was for ‘lifetime achievement’, and went to Rhys Mwyn. Not entirely convinced that the majority of the crowd present actually agreed with that. The amount of booing would have impressed even the most cynical pantomime cast. It’s probably a good job, then, that Mwyn wasn’t there in person, but I’m surprised that his Eyebrows didn’t come to get the award on his behalf. Instead, a little video message. How Brits.

Back to the real awards then.

Best album. Gweld y Llun (Anweledig), Chouchen (Deud Dim) or Yeti (Zabrinski). I have it on good authority that Yeti’s fantastic; I’ve never heard of Deud Dim let alone hear Chouchen; so it was only right and proper that Anweledig win this one. Gweld y Llun is, after all, one of the best albums of the last few years.

Pity about the security guards who tried to haul Ceri C offstage whilst he was trying to collect his award along with the rest of Anweledig. They seemed to be a little offended at his generosity in sharing his bottle of wine with the front few tables. White wine just doesn’t spray as well as champers, does it though?

Best EP/Single. Low Alpine (Anweledig), Y Mwyafrif (Pep le Pew), Y Meistri (Tystion). Well… I think even Anweledig would admit that Low Alpine didn’t really turn out as good as it could have. Y Meistri, well, can’t comment on Tystion’s offering, having only just recently been Radio Cymru-ised. But again, no real contest. A clean sweep for the johnny-come-lately Pep lads - taking every award they were nominated for. And well deserved I reckon.

Best Band. Now, try not to laugh when you see Gwacamoli pop up in the list of nominees here. But, the nominees were… Anweledig, Estella and *snicker* Gwacamoli .

I told you not to laugh.

Anweledig won. "Relax! Enjoy life!" as Ceri repeatedly advised us. Certainly will Ceri bach, thanks for the tip.

Finally, a closing set by Pep le Pew, who were by now both a) thoroughly hammered (Ed seemed to have big gaps in his memory the day after) and b) at the mercy of a wine-slick stage (cheers to Ceri C). Still, fucking great, as usual. You just can’t beat a good boogie to PLP.

Listening to it all now on Radio Cymru, courtesy Sky channel 904, is really weird. It sounds all very civilised and smooth-running, but it wasn’t. The whole evening started off with the presenters having only a tenuous grip on the proceedings, and the whole thing descended into raucous chaos relatively quickly. Nevertheless, it was the most fun I’ve had since the steddfod last year, probably because it was the same bunch of people. In fact, as Debs pointed out, the RAP awards have very much the same kind of feel as the steddfod, just they’re inside and marginally drier.

Da neu drwg?
Mae'r erthygl 'ma ar y wefan BBC yn diddorol iawn i unrhwyun sy'n siarad ail iaith, neu os mae eich plentyn yn dysgu iaith arall.

Mae'r Education Secretary eisiau peidio dysgu ieithoedd i blant at 14, a dechrau dysgu MFL (modern foreign languages) cynt? Syniad da? Dw i ddim yn siwr.

Mae ymenydd y plant yn ‘wired’ i ddysgu ieithoedd o enedigaeth. Wrth maen nhw’n tyfu i fyny, maen e’n anos i ddysgu unrhyw iaith. Felly, mae’n gwneud synnwyr i ddechrau dysgu ieithoedd pan mae plant yn iau. Ond rhaid i blant i gael safle i cymryd TGAU iaith? Ydy hwn yn meddwl fod plant yn cymryd eu TGAU nhw at 14?

Hefyd, mae’r Eduction Secretary eisiau defnyddio siaradwyr proffesiynol i ddysgu'r plant, ond mae hwnnw yn codi cwestiynau anodd. Fydd siaradwyr proffesiynol - pobl busnes, myfyfwyr prifysgol, academics a rhieni - yn gallu i ddysgu dda iawn? Mae 'na sgil mewn dysgu, ac mae'n anodd i ddysgu plant os sdim profiad 'da chi.

Dw i eisiau gweld mwy o bobl - plant a oedolion - yn siarad iaith arall, a dw i'n meddwl fod e'n pwysig iawn i gefnogi dysgwyr, ond dw i'm yn siwr am y cynllun 'ma. Mae'n smacks o cutting corners a penny pinching.

O na... pump dyddiau
Mae'n anodd iawn i wybod beth i ddweud ar hyn o bryd. Dw i'm yn darllen llawer, achos dw i'n gweithio gartre, felly does 'na ddim commute 'da fi. Dw i'm yn credu, ond dw i'n missio'r commute, yr hanner awr ar y trên i wneud dim byd on darllen. *sai* O wel. O leiaf does ddim rhaid imi i godi at 6.30am bob bore nawr. Hyfryd.

Dach chi’n teimlo’n lwcus?
Defnyddiwch Google yn y Gymraeg yma.

Dw i newydd defynddio rhaglen OCR i sganio tipyn bach o text, a rhaid imi ddweud, dw i’n cael argraff da o’r software. Mae’n da iawn. Nid llawer o gamgymeriadau, even gyda Cymraeg. Hm, jyst meddylwch o’r stwff galla i sganio am y safle. Mwy o gachu na byth!

Mae’n ddrwg gen i. Dw i ddim wedi cael siawn i bostio neges yma yr wythnos ‘ma. Dw i wedi bod yn brysur iawn - gweithio yn galed, cael cachu gan y twatiau yn y swyddfa, dumuno mae ‘na swydd arall ‘da fi. Chimod - fel arfer.

Pam rhaid i ddynion bod tyllau tinau pan maen nhw’n cwrdd â dynes mwy o ddeallus ‘na nhw? Dw i ddim yn gwybod, ond dw i wedi cael llond bol o ddynion gwreig-gasaol gyda inferiority complex.

Eniwe, dw i’n dal i ddarllen The Language Instinct, ond mae ‘na newyddion drwg ‘da Steven Pinker:

"Everyone knows that it is much more difficult to learn a second language in adulthood that a first language in childhood. Most adults never master a foreign language, especially the phonology [sounds that make up syllables] - hence the ubiquitous foreign accent. Their development often ‘fossilises’ into permanent error patterns that no teaching or correction can undo. Of course, there are great individual differences, which depend on effort, attitudes, amount of exposure, quality of teaching and plain talent, but there seems to be a cap even for the best adults in the best circumstances."

Na! Roeddwn i ddim eisiau clywed hynny! Dw i wedi bod dysgu Cymraeg ers tair blynedd, a dw i eisiau bod rhugl. Dw i’n gwybod fod fy Nghymraeg ddim yn perffaith eto - dw i’n dibynnu ar fy ngeiriaduron, (mae ‘na bedwar ohonyn nhw ‘da fi!) a dw i’m yn siwr yn lân am ramadeg, threigladau ac idiomau. Ond dw i’n meddwl fod i’n alluog o siarad yn rhugl, jyst dw i ddim yn cael siawns i siarad gyda pobl o ddydd i ddydd. Wedi’r cyfan, dw i’n byw yn Lloegr.

Ond, efallai, dydy ieithoedd yn dysgu yn dda iawn. Mae’r cyrsiau yn dwl, dydy’r geiriaduron wastad ddim yn rhy ddefyniol, ac does ‘na ddim llawer o gefnogi i ddysgwyr… Dw i ddim eisiau meddwl fod fy oed yn ar fai am fy mhroblemau gyda’r iaith, dw i eisiau meddwl os dw i’n gweithio’n galed, bydda i’n bod rhugl yn y diwedd.

Ydy hynny dim byd ond breuddwyd?

Multimap
Dwi'm yn byw yma, ond mae e'n edrych prydferth iawn. O wel.

Dych chi ddim eisiau gwybod hyn
Mae rhyddni ar fy nghath, Fflwff. Mae hi’n ymddangos prone iddo fe. Roedd hi’n sal iawn cwpl o fis yn ôl, a chymerodd e ddau wythos i glirio. Dwi’m yn siwr os dwi’n gallu i ymdopi gyda bout arall. Druan o Fflwff. Druan o fy nhrwyn.

(Hmm… malu cachu… peidiwch â dweud dim byd!)

54-10. Wps.

020202
Sori, ond rhaid imi postio rhwybeth, unrhwybeth, o achos y dyddiad. A byddwn ni'n cael dyddiad palindromig y flwyddyn 'ma hefyd - 20022002... ond nid os dych chi yn y US, pan mae'n 02202002. O, piti!

cefnogi'r iaith
"…Languages are perpetuated by the children who learn them. When linguists see a language spoken only by the adults, they know it is doomed. By this reasoning, they warn of an impending tragedy in the history of humankind. The linguist Michael Krauss estimates that… perhaps 3,000 (50%) [of languages] worldwide [are doomed]. Only about 600 languages are reasonably safe by dint of the sheer number of their speakers, say, a minimum of 100,000 (though this does not guarantee even short-term survival), and this optimistic assumption still suggests that between 3,600 and 5,400 languages, as many as 90% of the world’s total, are threatened with extinction in the next century.

The wide-scale extinction of languages is reminiscent of the current (though [arguably] less severe) wide-scale extinction of plant and animal species. The causes overlap. Languages disappear by the destruction of the habitats of their speakers, as well as by genocide, forced assimilation and assimilatory education, demographic submersion, and bombardment by electronic media, which Krauss calls ‘cultural nerve gas’. Aside from halting the more repressive social and political causes of cultural annihilation, we can forestall some linguistic extinctions by developing pedagogical materials, literature and television in the indigenous language."

- Steven Pinker, The Language Instinct


Ond dan i’n gallu defnyddio ‘bombardment by electronic media’ i atal yr erosion o’r iaith Gymraeg. Gallen ni gwneud gwefannau Cymreig, yng Ngymraeg, a gallen ni ddefnyddio’r we i ddysgu, i helpu dysgwyr, ac i gefnogi siaradwyr Cymraeg. Ond, ble mae'r arian i wneud hynny? Ble mae'r cefnogi o'r cynulliad genedlaethol? Ble mae'r inspiration, yr innovation, yr ingenuity? Pam ydy e'n mor anodd i gael help gyda'r sponsorship a grantiau? A pham dw i'n cael dim byd ond difaterwch pan dw i'n ceisio i siarad gyda pobl am ddarganfod grantiau am glwb malu cachu? Rhaid i'r cynulliad gendlaethol pull it's damn finger out, nid yfory, ond nawr, i helpu safle fel cmc i datblygu.