Composer Matthew Hall will be taking an active part in a South Wales riot over the next year or so, thanks to his award winning composition ‘Legends of Cyfarthfa’.

Blaina Riots

The work, played by current British Open Champions Tredegar, is to be used as background music for a new film, which will tell the story of the Blaina Riots, which took place in 1935 in the small South Wales valley town in protest against the inequities of the pre war Welfare system.

Famous trial

Film maker Alison Collison told 4BR: "The incidents led to one of the most famous trials in 20th century Welsh history, after police charged the crowd with batons, injuring over 200 local people, and were forced to later admit in court that their accounts of what had happened were not altogether true..."

Eighteen local men were initially arrested and charged with a series of crimes, with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, although following the evidence produced in court the judge found that the police were "not guilty of any misconduct whatsoever".

...police charged the crowd with batons, injuring over 200 local people, and were forced to later admit in court that their accounts of what had happened were not altogether true...Alison Collinson

Beveridge Report

The Blaina Riots are regarded as one of the most important episodes of collective protest by ordinary people that led to the Beveridge Report, and the setting up of the Welfare State to provide a fair safety net in times of need.

Honour

Matt is delighted that excerpts of his work, which won the ‘Best New Composition Award’ at the 2010 Brass in Concert Championships, will evoke the atmosphere of an unique episode of Welsh history.

"It’s a real honour to be asked," he told 4BR. "The work itself seeks to portray the struggle of working class people and for it to be used to help provide such a potent reminder of an historic event is something I’m really proud of."

Amazing story

Alison added: "As soon as we heard the music we knew it would provide a perfect backdrop to an amazing story."

The film will be shown at the Chartist Centre, in Blaina from August onwards this year.