Caradog Roberts (30 October 1878 — 3 March 1935) was a Welsh composer, organist and choirmaster.
Roberts was born in
Rhosllannerchrugog to John and Margaret Roberts. He showed musical talent since his childhood, winning several prizes at Welsh festivals (
eisteddfod
In Welsh culture, an ''eisteddfod'' is an institution and festival with several ranked competitions, including in poetry and music.
The term ''eisteddfod'', which is formed from the Welsh morphemes: , meaning 'sit', and , meaning 'be', means, ac ...
au) in which he participated.
He studied piano and organ, becoming organist of Mynydd Seion Congregational church,
Ponciau
Ponciau is a village within the community of Rhosllanerchrugog, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It is close to the villages of Legacy, Pentre Bychan and Johnstown and is overlooked by Ruabon Mountain.
The village name is also applied to a la ...
from 1894 until 1903. In the next year he took the same position at Bethlehem Congregational church, Rhosllanerchrugog, a post he retained until his death. He took the degrees of B.Mus. (1906) and D.Mus. (1911), both at
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...
.
[Evans, Robert; Humphreys, Maggie; Dictionary of Composers for the Church in Great Britain and Ireland. Bloomsbury Publishing, 1997.] From 1914 to 1920, he was Director of Music at
Bangor University.
Roberts was one of the editors of ''Y Caniedydd Cynulleidfaol Newydd''
(1921), the hymnal of the Welsh Independent Church, as well as ''Caniedydd Newydd yr Ysgol Sul'' (1930), the Sunday School hymnal of that same church.
Roberts was a prolific composer and arranger of
hymn tunes, several of which were incorporated into Welsh hymnaries. Among the most well-known are ''
Rachie'' and ''In Memoriam'', a tribute to Welsh composer
Harry Evans.
He died in
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
,
Denbighshire
Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnewy ...
, on 3 March 1935, and is buried in Rhosllannerchrugog cemetery.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Caradog
1878 births
1935 deaths
Welsh-speaking musicians
20th-century classical composers
British Romantic composers
Welsh classical composers
Welsh male classical composers
People from Rhosllanerchrugog
20th-century British composers
20th-century British male musicians
19th-century British male musicians