Ownership of tunesMusicians were often anxious about their tunes; they didn’t want other players<strong>to</strong> get ahold of them. Leiv Sandalsdalen from Seljord was known for h<strong>is</strong> sevenKivlemøy tunes. On one occasion, he was <strong>to</strong> have a concert, but as soon as hecame on<strong>to</strong> the stage he immediately packed h<strong>is</strong> <strong>fiddle</strong> away and d<strong>is</strong>appeared. Hehad seen <strong>that</strong> the great <strong>fiddle</strong>r, Lars Fykerud, was sitting in the hall.Also, it <strong>is</strong> said about the legendary <strong>fiddle</strong>r, Fel-Jakup from Lom, <strong>that</strong> he wouldquickly hide h<strong>is</strong> <strong>fiddle</strong> away if he spotted <strong>fiddle</strong>rs who he didn’t want <strong>to</strong> learn h<strong>is</strong>tunes.<strong>The</strong>re are s<strong>to</strong>ries of how people s<strong>to</strong>le tunes by l<strong>is</strong>tening outside house walls andhid themselves in barrels in order <strong>to</strong> get ahold of other <strong>fiddle</strong>rs’ tunes. Tuneswere a source of income for many, and it was a great value if the player had apersonal reper<strong>to</strong>ire. Individual <strong>fiddle</strong>rs also had their own d<strong>is</strong>tricts where theyhad exclusive rights <strong>to</strong> play for dances and at weddings.Fiddlers must be persuaded – not all like <strong>to</strong> bragNils Bei<strong>to</strong>haugen, born in 1863, was known for h<strong>is</strong> sparklinging dance playing.He was once in Oslo in order <strong>to</strong> make a recording.“Is it you who <strong>is</strong> the great <strong>fiddle</strong>r from Valdres?”, it was asked when he arrived atthe recording studio.Bei<strong>to</strong>haugen hummed and hawed. “No”, he said, “I’m no all <strong>that</strong> good!”In the capital city’s recording studio, th<strong>is</strong> comment was taken literally. Nilstravelled home <strong>to</strong> Valdres – without having played a note.Sources and lines of traditionFolk musicians, either singers or players, concern themselves with where theirmusic <strong>comes</strong> from. A musician who <strong>is</strong> in possession of a particular tune or song,and who passes it on by teaching, <strong>is</strong> called a kilde (source). <strong>The</strong> foremostteachers are not necessarily amongst the foremost musicians. What <strong>is</strong> mostimportant <strong>is</strong> <strong>that</strong> the person passes the melody and text on <strong>to</strong> next generation.Nowadays, a recording can be a source. In <strong>that</strong> case, it <strong>is</strong> important for theperson who learns the tune <strong>to</strong> know who <strong>is</strong> playing on the recording. A tune canthus continue <strong>to</strong> be transmitted for several hundred years without ever beingwritten down, and the connection back through time <strong>is</strong> actually quite v<strong>is</strong>ible.Inspiration for classical music and composersMany composers in Europe at the end of the 1800s were engaged with the folkmusic of their home country. In <strong>Norway</strong>, Edvard Grieg and many of h<strong>is</strong>contemporaries were occupied with folk music and based much of theirorchestral work on folk melodies and tunes. <strong>The</strong> composers, Eivind Groven fromTelemark and Geirr Tveitt from Hardanger, grew up surrounded by folk music inthe home and reworked it in<strong>to</strong> an orchestral format.
North of the mountain, Gausta, liesTinn, which <strong>is</strong> a unique area in theTelemark tradition. <strong>The</strong> <strong>fiddle</strong>r,Knut Dahle, who was the source ofEdvard Grieg’s “Slaater – opus 72”,lived there. In th<strong>is</strong> collection ofpiano pieces, Grieg reworksHardanger <strong>fiddle</strong> music in<strong>to</strong> a newform based upon Romantic music.Grieg considered th<strong>is</strong> piece <strong>to</strong> be oneof h<strong>is</strong> most important.Knut DahleFiddlers in AmericaMany Norwegians emigrated <strong>to</strong> America and many a <strong>fiddle</strong> case and a <strong>fiddle</strong>rmade the long journey over the Atlantic. Many settled down, but some went <strong>to</strong>do concert <strong>to</strong>urs. Lars Fykerud was one of those who had a big name in“Junaiten”. He travelled far and wide and sometimes earnt well.<strong>The</strong> <strong>fiddle</strong>r, Knut Dahle - Edvard Greig’s source - was on <strong>to</strong>ur in America in the1890s. On h<strong>is</strong> journey, he met the master <strong>fiddle</strong>r from Telemark, Lars Fykerud,several times. One day, Dahle went in<strong>to</strong> a barber’s shop <strong>to</strong> get h<strong>is</strong> hair cut and whos<strong>to</strong>od there with comb and sc<strong>is</strong>sors? None other than Fykerud! <strong>It</strong> must have beenhard times for Fykerud <strong>to</strong> have taken such a job. When Lars saw Knut Dale, tearssprang from the corners of both of their eyes. He <strong>to</strong>ok an old dusifele down fromthe wall and played a halling he had learnt from Dahle, whilst the tears ran.Fykerud wanted Dahle <strong>to</strong> come with him on a <strong>to</strong>ur around the USA – they wouldbecome millionaires, he <strong>believed</strong>. But the old Dahle said ‘no thanks’ and explained<strong>that</strong> he had just bought a train ticket. So, nothing ever did come of the <strong>to</strong>ur.Lars Fykerud, Telemark
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