Ffarwél i Waith y Penrhyn — Gwilym Bowen Rhys

Mae'r cyfoeth o olion diwydiannol ac adfeilion hanesyddol sydd i'w gweld yn Eryri yn brawf o arwyddocâd yr ardal fel man sydd yn gartref i hanes o bwys rhyngwladol.

Ond mae modd profi hanes a threftadaeth unigryw'r ardal o ffynonellau eraill yn ogystal. Gall baledi a chaneuon gwerin Cymreig gynnig mewnwelediad cyfoethog i'r Eryri a fu— bron y cawn glywed leisiau'r gorffennol yn adrodd eu hanes drwy'r caneuon hyn.

Mae Gwilym Bowen Rhys yn gerddor, cyfansoddwr ac ymddiddorwr brwd mewn baledi a chaneuon gwerin Cymreig. Yma mae'n perfformio 'Ffarwél i Waith y Penrhyn', cân sydd yn ymylu ar alarnad chwarelwr o gau Chwarel y Penrhyn ger Bethesda.

Cafodd y diwydiant llechi ddylanwad sylweddol ar Eryri a'r ardal a bu i'r dylanwad yma ei gydnabod yn ddiweddar pan ddynodwyd nifer o safloedd chwarela ar draws gogledd Cymru fel Safle Treftadaeth y Byd UNESCO.

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The Eryri landscape is adorned with a wealth of industrial remnants and historical ruins, serving as evidence of the region's profound importance as a home of internationally recongnized history.

Nevertheless, other, lesser-known sources can allow us to experience this historical essence. Welsh ballads and folk songs often offer a vivid window into the Eryri of yesteryears—as if the voices of the past come alive to narrate their tales through melody and words.

Gwilym Bowen Rhys is a musician, composer, and enthusiastic collector of Welsh ballads and folk songs. Here he performs 'Ffarwél i Waith y Penrhyn' (Farewell to the Penrhyn Works), a song that verges on a quarryman's lament over the closure of Penrhyn Quarry near Bethesda.

The profound impact of the slate industry on Eryri was recently formally recognized when a number of quarrying sites spanning across north Wales were bestowed the prestigious UNESCO World Heritage Site status.