The Bards' Journey

It’s a time when we once again find ourselves between two worlds, travelling from the darkness to the light, feeling the cold giving way to warmth, and standing at the point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox... Imbolc (often pronounced ‘ Imolc ’) is traditionally seen as the first of the Spring festivals and is celebrated on February 1. There are several origins of the name, one being that it came from the Old Gaelic word i mbolc , which means ‘in the belly

It was the first track we recorded back in 2023 – now, one of our standards is getting a remix. Black Pine was the first track we put down, for a pilot of an AWEN podcast (more on that to come). It’s short, catchy, and, as you might expect, a musical story – this time about a sorceress who seeks enlightenment. So she sends her hapless and besotted apprentice deep into the forest to gather three items for a ritual, to give her second sight... What could possibly go wrong? List

Woodcut meets Graphic Novel for our new releases! Being musical storytellers, it’s no surprise that many of our songs have narrative lyrics. Sometimes it’s just the hint of a tale, but sometimes it’s a full-out three-act structure in five minutes... And sometimes, stories benefit from pictures to bring them alive. This past year, we’ve been refining AWEN’s brand communication, which basically means making sure that everything we say and do and produce is joined up. One of tho

Our Autumn Equinox Rite was held in a woodland grove, close to Bath, in the West of England. With a twilight Bardic ritual, songs to mark the balance of day and night and (maybe) a few Celtic gods watching on we welcomed the shorter days in AWEN style. Working with twin spirals mapped out on the ground, representing the two halves of the year, we brought the rite alive with music and sound. The Autumn Equinox is sometimes referred to as the Second Harvest; the harvest of frui

Our Lughnasadh festival celebrations took us to the hills of Wessex with music and mead, to bless the land, sing traditional songs – and visit the local pub. Who wouldn’t?

Through the dark winter months we’ve been busy writing material for a new show. Mezzanine is an imaginative, original and topical...

Lucy Spencer, irrepressible folklore forager, has joined the AWEN troupe, making our shows and events even more colourful with her...

So... it’s a few degrees above freezing and we’re standing at 5am in a field in pitch darkness, with the cold seeping from the muddy...

This autumn we’re out with some Bardic events, to share our mystical musical storytelling ahead of a new show which is in development....

On a sweltering summer day we climbed Glastonbury Tor to play beneath the tower...

Well, 2024 took an unexpected twist… Back in March an opportunity arose to write an Anthem for the 25th Anniversary of the Welsh...

It’s official – the Bards are Back in Town! And we’re part of the 25th Anniversary Celebrations of the Senedd – the Welsh Parliament. Why...

What instrument do you need when you’re composing an Anthem for the Welsh Parliament? How do you make the connection between ancient...

Adding her expertise to The 
Bardic Band, please welcome… the exceptional Gina Griffin! Since turning pro at eighteen, Gina has worked...

Our new manager, Steve E. Nortrop, has taken a front-facing role as the first point of contact for bookings and promotion of AWEN, The...

OK – we can’t say much about Location X, and why we’re even there, until this is all out of the bag at the start of June. Of course, the...

On a misty morning in February, Awen‘s Call were a-laying down percussion tracks for three new songs, Beltane Flame, Green Room and Three Ships....