Following the success of last year's Pontypridd Brass Band Festival, organisers have told 4BR that they wish to build further with a celebration of the region's rich musical heritage.

2025 saw the publication of a new fanfare to the Welsh National Anthem, 'Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau' composed by Dave Collins and made available to all, for free, via Ty Cerdd and Bandiau Pres Cymru.

100th anniversary

This year, with the 100th anniversary of the bandstand in Ynysangharad War Memorial Park, they have commissioned a new work to honour the role it has played as a focal point of the musical life of Pontypridd.

Written by composer Dr. Neil Day with a working title of 'Y Goleuni Disglair', it will draw from the region's musical history and will receive its world premiere at the 2026 festival with help from a funding bid placed with the Ty Cerdd CREATE fund.

Brass connection

Neil Day is a Welsh musician and composer with a long-standing connection to brass band music and a multi-genre composing record. He has written for many diverse ensembles and has an intimate understanding of the South Wales musical landscape.

He has written many unpublished works for brass bands which has strengthened his deep understanding of the ensemble and its traditions.

Honour

He stated: "It's an honour to be asked to commemorate such an iconic landmark in Pontypridd. Such places are so representative of what valleys life and society has been about — a central feature and focal point of a close community."