ABSTRACT
One of the most interesting Anglo-Welsh sources from the end of the sixteenth century is a lengthy essay entitled 'Klod kerdd dafod ai dechreuad'. This is a translation by the Flintshire nobleman Sion Conwy of the learned Latin essay Apologia Musices. The title selected for Conwy's Welsh translation of the Apologia is something of a curiosity, since the word dafod that appears in Hafod 24 suggests that this is to be a discussion of vernacular poetry rather than music. In general terms, Conwy's text as a whole is far from easy to read. The Welsh is poor and often obscures Case's original meaning, while there are signs that Conwy's understanding of music itself was severely limited. The musica figuralis of Case's Latin original is translated very literally as cerdd ossodedic, literally 'placed song' or 'set song', while harmonia is generally represented by Conwy as lleossogrwydd.
