William FowlerOver a century of the Bristol Eisteddfod

 

The Founder.

William Ernest Fowler L.R.A.M.,A.R.C.M.  1872 - 1954 Born in Bristol (St. Pauls). was the son of a hairdresser with two siblings; Alice Maud Fowler and Frederick Fowler.  He married Madeline Bess Burland in 1897 and had two daughters; Madeline Edith Grace (1898-1985) and Constance Mary (1906-1976) who played the Cello. (This same Cello which William gave Constance is now played by great grandson William Blyth)   At the age of 14 he became the organist at The Pro Cathedral and after 10 years moved to All Saints - City where he was organist for over 50 years. William later retired to Portishead where he died aged 82.

The Bristol Eisteddfod was founded by William Ernest Fowler in 1903 and continued under his direction without a break even during two wars.  He registered as a teacher in 1923 when the law changed.  In 1932 it was suggested that W. E. Fowler be given the Freedom of the City for his services to the arts and to Bristol.  However there are no records of this in the Bristol Burgess Books.  In 1934 he was the Honorary Representative in Bristol of the Royal Academy of Music and the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music;  also Honorary local Secretary of the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM)

The Eisteddfod (Gathering) is a festival involving artistic competitions and Bristol is recorded as having an Eisteddfod in 1871/2 organised by the Bristol Welsh Literary and Musical Society.  In 1872 the set song was 'The Watch of the Rhine' and the Brass Band set piece was 'Men of Harlech'.  There were a range of prizes such as £2.2s.0d for the best paper on 'The Best Field for Artisan Emigration', and another prize for the best paper on 'Railway Accidents and how to prevent them'. This first Eisteddfod with music in Bristol was held at The Lion Assembly Rooms, Broad Street.


William Ernest Fowler felt there should be an Eisteddfod in Bristol which was open to all-comers without distinction of nationality.  The first Eisteddfod held in 1903 at the Victoria Rooms had over 300 entries with competitors coming from London, Bath, Cardiff, Bournemouth, Newport.  The competitions included Piano, Violin, Choral, Organ, Vocal, Reading at sight for Vocalists and Military Band. A small concert was held at the Victoria Rooms.
Prizes given were usually cash, but also Trophies to be held for one year, medals and the adjudicators notes with a certificate,  but in 1909 the first prize for the Great Pianoforte Solo Contest was a 'Steck' Piano, value £50.

By 1914, the entries had reached over 2000 and Railway vouchers were issued to choir winners to encourage entries.   Folk Dancing, Morris Dancing, Morris Jig, Country and Sword Dancing was introduced with Cecil Sharpe (EFD&SS)* as the Adjudicator.  There was also a set vocal piece written especially for the Eisteddfod by Dr Alfred J Silver - 'Snowdrops'.  We would like to trace a copy of this for the 2014 Eisteddfod.

The Victoria Rooms was taken over by the military in 1915 so the Eisteddfod moved across the road to the Royal West of England Fine Arts Academy with some competitions being held in the basement and others in the Central Gallery at the top of the building.


The Eisteddfod continued during WW1 but there were no concerts.  In 1917 and 1918  there were special vocal classes for wounded members of His Majesty's Forces and working girls clubs.  Numbers of entries did drop during the First World War years, but gradually increased again until by 1928 there were over 6000 performers which also included 50 choirs and 900 Folk Dancers. Sometimes the Royal West of England Academy, the Bristol Music Club, the Central Hall in Old Market, the Museum Lecture Theatre and Bristol Grammar School were also used from the 1920's as numbers increased with competitors coming from all over England, Wales and even Scotland.


For many years two concerts were held in the Victoria Rooms at the end of the Eisteddfod and were very popular.   The afternoon concert was for the junior ages and the evening concert was for the adult competitors and each lasted several hours.  These were often attended by The Lord Mayor and Sheriff.
Madeline Bess Fowler, wife of the founder died in 1932.  The following year the Bess Fowler Trophy was donated by the founder in memory of his wife who had done so much behind the scenes as secretary.  It is engraved 'Art is Long, Life is Short'. It was awarded to the competitor reaching the highest standard of efficiency in the festival.  Its first recipient was Doreen Cross of Southville.  This trophy is still awarded to a worthy competitor from a different section each year.   A Reredos was erected in 1935 in the Jesus Chapel of All Saints Church, City dedicated to Madeline Bess Fowler.


The Victoria Rooms was badly damaged by fire so the Eisteddfod moved to the Colston Hall and other venues for two years, returning in 1937. Numbers dropped slightly but had reached 4000 by 1947.


Later the Bristol City Council took on the responsibility for running the Eisteddfod but in the late 1990's they ceased funding so the Bristol Eisteddfod is now self funding and about this time The Dance Section left the main umbrella of the Bristol Eisteddfod.  The name was later changed to The Bristol Festival of Music, Speech and Drama but is still registered as a charity under the name of Bristol Eisteddfod Association.  It is still often referred to as The Bristol Eisteddfod.

The Bristol Eisteddfod attracted some prominent adjudicators, including:-

 

  • Sir Adrian Boult
  • Sir (Dr) A. Herbert Brewer
  • Dame Clara Butt
  •  Mr Thomas F. Dunhill 
  • Gustav Holst
  •  Dr Herbert Howells
  •  Mr Hubert Hunt
  •  John Ireland
  •  Hugh Roberton
  • Cecil Sharp
  •  Sir A. Somervell  

Some people associated with The Bristol Eisteddfod.

  • Lady Barclay Baron
  • The Duchess of Beaufort
  • Miss Abigail Dodds
  • Misses G, & E, Garjulo  
  • Elsie Griffin
  •  Miss Doris Mogridge.

Please can you help us?

We are always requiring volunteers to help in various roles.  If you feel you could spare some time, no matter how little, please contact any of the committee members or section secretaries.  All contact details can be found on the Committee page or the relevant instrument category pages

 
*EFD&SS - English Folk Dance and Song Society founded by Cecil Sharpe
Researched by Ann Hunt.2013