John Parry ( – 7 October 1782), known as ''Parri Ddall, Rhiwabon'' (or, in English, ''Blind Parry of

Ruabon Ruabon (; ) is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough Wrexham County Borough () is a Principal areas of Wales, county borough, with city status in the United Kingdom, city status, in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. I ...

'') was born in the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( or , ) is a peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales, with an area of about , and a population of at least 20,000. It extends into the Irish Sea, and its southern coast is the northern boundary of the Tremadog Bay inlet of Cardigan Ba ...

Caernarfonshire Caernarfonshire (; , ), previously spelled Caernarvonshire or Carnarvonshire, was one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It was located in the north-west of Wales. Geography The county ...

, now Gwynedd, in

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, and was blind from birth. His first

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

s were the Griffiths family, of the Cefn Amwlch estate at Bryn Cynan near

Nefyn Nefyn (, archaically anglicised as Nevin) is a town and community (Wales), community on the northwest coast of the Llŷn Peninsula, Gwynedd, Wales. Nefyn is popular with visitors for its sandy beach, and has one substantial hotel, a community pu ...

, who provided the young Parry with a Welsh

triple harp The triple harp is a type of multi-course harp employing three parallel rows of strings instead of the more common single row. One common version is the Welsh triple harp ( Welsh: ''telyn deires''), used today mainly among players of traditional ...

. He later became

harpist The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has individual string (music), strings running at an angle to its sound board (music), soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing ...

to Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn at Wynnstay,

and became a master of the High

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. He lived on the Wynnstay estate but spent much of his time at the Williams-Wynn's London home where he performed on the Welsh triple harp for London's cultural elite. Parry became a member of the

Royal Society of Musicians The Royal Society of Musicians of Great Britain is a Charitable organization, charity in the United Kingdom that supports musicians. It is the oldest music-related charity in Great Britain, founded in 1738 as the ''Fund for Decay'd Musicians'' by a ...

in 1763. He inspired

Thomas Gray Thomas Gray (26 December 1716 – 30 July 1771) was an English poet, letter-writer, and classics, classical scholar at Cambridge University, being a fellow first of Peterhouse then of Pembroke College, Cambridge, Pembroke College. He is widely ...

to write his 1757 poem, ''

The Bard A bard is a minstrel in medieval Scottish, Irish, and Welsh societies; and later re-used by romantic writers. For its wider definition including similar roles in other societies, see List of oral repositories. Bard, BARD, Bård or similar terms m ...

''. It is also claimed that Parry first wrote down – or dictated to his fellow-compiler Evan Williams – in his manuscript ''Antient British Music'' (1741) a then unnamed 'aria' which is now world-famous as " Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly". It appears as "Nôs Calan" in ''British Harmony Being a Collection of Antient Welsh Airs The traditional Remains of those Originally Sung By the Bards of Wales'' "carefully compiled and now first published with some additional variations By John Parry Inscribed with all due Esteem and Gratitude to Sir Watkin Williams Wynn Bart." It was subsequently published and named "Nos Galan" (in English, "New Year's Eve") in ''Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards'' (1784) by Edward Jones. Parry remained with the Williams-Wynn family until his death on 7October 1782 at Ruabon. He was buried at Ruabon Parish Church on 10 October 1782. John Parry's son, William Parry (1742–1791), was an accomplished artist. Many of his works, including portraits of his father, are held by the

National Museum A national museum can be a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In the United States, most nati ...

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Bibliography

*''John Parry (c.1710–1782): Y Telynor Dall – The Blind Harper'' – by Huw Williams: Clwyd County Council (1982) *Frank Kidson's contribution ''Welsh Music'' p.p. 492–501 of ''Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' Vol. V, T-Z, 1st edition 1910, ed. J.A. Fuller Maitland, London: Macmillan & Co. Ltd.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parry, John Welsh harpists Blind musicians People from Nefyn 1782 deaths Year of birth uncertain People from Ruabon Welsh blind people