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{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Owain Phyfe
| image = Troubadour-2003.jpg
| caption = Owain Phyfe plays for an audience at a Renaissance fair in 2003
| alt =
| background = solo_singer and musician
| birth_name = Owen Fite
| alias =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1949|04|09|mf=y}}
| birth_place =
| death_date = {{death date|2012|09|05|mf=y}}<ref name=obit>{{cite web|author=By Jerry Wolffe of The Oakland Press |url=http://www.theoaklandpress.com/articles/2012/09/13/news/local_news/doc50525bbed19c7211409144.txt |title=''Renaissance Musician Owain 'Phyfe' Fite Dies at 62'' |publisher=theoaklandpress.com |date=2012-09-13 |accessdate=2013-04-05}}</ref>
| death_place =
| origin =
| genre = folk
| instrument = guitar/vocals
| occupation = Singer-songwriter
| years_active =
| label =
| associated_acts = CANTIGUA, New World Renaissance Band
| website = www.owainphyfe.com
}}
'''Owain Phyfe''' (1949-2012) was a vocalist, instrumentalist, composer, and the founder of Nightwatch Recording, which concentrates on [[Renaissance music|Renaissance]] and [[Medieval music]]. He lived in Berkley, Mich., often playing at O'Mara's Restaurant when he wasn't traveling the Renaissance circuit. He died from pancreatic cancer on September 5, 2012.<ref name=obit/> The following day performers and fans held an all night wake in his honor.
==Early years==
Phyfe grew up in a bilingual family with [[Welsh language|Welsh]] as a second language. Phyfe started and ran an automotive engineering company for nearly ten years.<ref name="rm1998">[http://www.renaissancemagazine.com/backissues/owain.html "Period Music for Modern Times: Owain Phyfe and the New World Renaissance Band"], ''Renaissance Magazine'', Vol. 3, #2, Issue #10 (1998)</ref> In 1992, however, nourished by his grandparent's appreciation for song, Phyfe's study of languages in college and his travels abroad to England, France, Mexico, and Spain as well as his experience later as a musician in [[New York City]]'s [[Greenwich Village]], he sold the company and turned to music as a full-time profession.<ref name=autogenerated1>[http://www.owainphyfe.com/ Owain Phyfe Appreciative Listener Society (OPALS)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
==Beginnings==
In the mid-1980s, Phyfe and his wife Paula became festival performers at the [[Michigan Renaissance Festival]]. Spellbound by early music, Phyfe decided to develop a "singer of songs" persona. While researching late medieval and renaissance music, he found himself favoring faire life over the automotive engineering company he had started in 1983. "It became my dream to present the beauty of Renaissance music," Phyfe explained, "not as a documentary, but as a living expression."<ref name=autogenerated1 />
==Musical career==
He teamed up with the magical [[Renaissance Fair]] jam band CANTIGA in 1990 to form The New World Renaissance Band, specializing in the performance of ancient music in English, Spanish, Italian, Welsh, German, French, Provençal and Latin. He has also toured with [[Richie Blackmore]] and [[Candice Night]].<ref>[http://www.cantigamusic.com/links.html Cantiga Music Website]</ref> He played many traditional instruments including recorders, viola, cello, fiddle, and harp. He performed across the U.S.,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nightwatchrecording.com/calendar.owain.htm |title= |publisher=Nightwatchrecording.com |date=2012-04-01 |accessdate=2013-04-05}}</ref> and his music has aired worldwide and on over 250 radio stations across North America.<ref>[http://www.theoaklandpress.com/general-news/20120913/renaissance-musician-owain-phyfe-fite-dies-at-62 Oakland Press News], 13 Sep 2012</ref> He performed and offered workshops at folk festivals <ref> {{Citation
| last = Downing
| first = Bob
| author-link =
| last2 =
| first2 =
| author2-link =
| title = Hear Folk Songs in the Valley Mountain Rose Summer Folk Festival at Happy Days Visitors Center
| newspaper = Akron Beacon Journal
| year = 1998
| date = July 16, 1998
| url = http://docs.newsbank.com.dewey.waubonsee.edu/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:AWNB:ABJB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0EB6C1D4CA4907AB&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggdocs&req_dat=76B119A68A3949D9A5E0BE5FB8772E3A
| accessdate = Feb 8, 2014 }}</ref>, medieval recreationist, musical and Neo-Pagan events including the [[Society for Creative Anachronism|S.C.A.]]'s [[Pennsic War]],<ref>[http://www.pennsic.net/entertain.html Pennsic.Net - Entertainers at Pennsic War<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The SCA's "Gulf Wars" event, where he performed solo and also with Wolgemut at the Green Dragon Tavern the [[Michigan Renaissance Festival]],<ref>[http://www.renaissancemagazine.com/backissues/owain.html Owain Phyfe article renaissance magazine<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Sirius Rising, [[Pagan Spirit Gathering]]<ref>[http://www.circlesanctuary.org/psg/music Pagan Spirit Gathering 2008<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> and the [[Starwood Festival]],<ref>[http://www.rosencomet.com/starwood/2004/entertainment/list.php#owain Starwood Festival 24 | Entertainment |ACE Pagan Magical Consciousness Gathering<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> both as a soloist and with the New World Renaissance Band. He also contributed to the soundtrack of the [[Wim Wenders]] film ''[[Pina (film)|Pina]]''<ref>[http://www.nightwatchrecording.com/What%27sNew.htm ''La Prima Vez'']</ref>
==Partial discography==
===Owain Phyfe===
* 1995 - ''Sweet Was the Song'' (with L'Ensemble Josquin) ([[Nightwatch Recording]])
* 1999 - ''Poets, Bards, & Singers of Songs'' (Nightwatch Recording)
* 2006 - ''Lágrimas de Sangría (Tears of Sangria)'' (Nightwatch Recording)
===New World Renaissance Band===
* 1992 - ''Live the Legend'' (Nightwatch Recording)
* 1995 - ''Where Beauty Moves and Wit Delights'' (Nightwatch Recording)
* 1996 - ''Odyssey'' (Nightwatch Recording)
* 2002 - ''Tales From the Vineyard'' (Nightwatch Recording)
===Soundtrack===
* 2011 - ''Pina'', Director: Wim Wenders, song: ''La Prima Vez'' (Neue Road Movies, Eurowide Film Production)[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-K_4mrtFzY]
==Critical reception==
''Live the Legend'' made the year-end bestseller list for classical releases at a number of retail chains across the midwest, including Streetside Records and Harmony House, and ranked #13 nationwide on Public Radio Music Source's classical best-seller list.<ref name="rm1998"/>
Reviewing a performance in St. Louis, the ''[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]'' said, "the fact that the group's sound was nearly as seamless live as it was coming out of the the recording studio is impressive in the extreme, especially since the band's first two releases, "Live the Legend" and "Where Beauty Moves and Wit Delights," are outstanding musically and acoustically...The group's leader, Owain Phyfe, handles the foreign language lyrics of many of the songs as easily as he does the English (a skill many opera singers would do well to emulate)."<ref>Debbie Stover, "Forget the chatter, get to the music," [[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]], 17 Feb 1994.</ref>
===Awards===
*1997 ''Cessés Mortels de Soupirer'' (Sigh no More, Mortals) - Best Music Video: Ohio's National Telly Awards
*1997 ''Cessés Mortels de Soupirer'' (Sigh no More, Mortals) - Best Music Video: International Communicator Awards
*2003 [[Texas Renaissance Festival]]: The Phillip Hafer (King Henry) Memorial MVP Award
===Performance reviews===
* ''Revue Magazine'' June 1995
* ''Detroit Monthly'' March 1996
* ''WKBD-TV News Spotlight'' May 26, 1996
===Album reviews===
* ''Sunday Oakland Press'' March 3, 1996
* ''Shakespeare Oxford Newsletter'' Sept. 1997
* ''Magical Blend'' 1998 Issue #62
* ''Detroit Free Press'' Sept. 19th, 1999
* ''The Mists of Avalon'' - WDVR-FM
* [http://www.atthefaire.com/articles/2001/06-20-01_owain_poets_CD.htm Review of Owain Phyfe's ''Poets, Bards and Singers of Song'' by Willa, 'At The Fair'' Staff Writer (June 20, 2001)]
==References==
<references />
==Further reading==
*[http://www.owainphyfe.com Autobiography from concert program insert]
*[http://joeguppy.livejournal.com/565103.html ''In Memorium: Owain Phyfe'' by Joe Guppy in Live Journal, Sept. 9, 2012]
*[http://www.renfesthq.com/renaissance-living/owain-phyfe/?doing_wp_cron=1391816558.2928318977355957031250 ''In Remembrance of the Bard, Owain Phyfe'' in RenFestHQ (Sept, 6, 2012)]
* Bielefeld, Robert (2006) ''Cantiga's Renaissance Festival Favorites'' (Mel Bay Publications)
*[http://blog.songsofthegoddess.com/2012/09/05/a-sad-goodbye-to-owain-phyfe.aspx ''A sad goodbye to Owain Phyfe'']
*[http://www.dabelly.com/features/feature252.htm ''Owain Phyfe - the 12th-16th century rock god'' by Sally A. Schwartz in DaBelly Magazine, 2008]
==External links==
* http://www.myspace.com/owainphyfe
* http://www.nightwatchrecording.com
* http://www.owainphyfe.com
{{Persondata
| NAME = Phyfe, Owain
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American composer and musician
| DATE OF BIRTH = 1949
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH = 2012 Sept 5
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phyfe, Owain}}
[[Category:Renaissance fair performers]]
[[Category:American male singers]]
[[Category:American singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:American composers]]
[[Category:1949 births]]
[[Category:2012 deaths]]