If you're a regular reader of Stubby's, you know that I grew up reading Billboard magazine and looking longingly at the international charts, wondering why I couldn't obtain--or at least hear--the Christmas songs thereon. Thanks to the internets, those childhood wishes have been granted (and then some). I've also mentioned that it's become something of a tradition of mine to purchase at least one Christmas CD from a faraway land every year (not including the UK, cause I'll frequently buy several from there). Some people travel to exotic places; this is what I do. And, if you were with us in the off-season, you might remember that this then-planned release was my early contender. And, yes, "Jul på Sunnmørsk", from the faraway land of Norway, is indeed my international purchase for 2018. And I could not be happier.
|
1. Vi tenner våre lykter (We Light Our Lamps)
2. Det ekje snøv (Let It Snow) 3. Julestemning veks ikkje på tre (Winter Wonderland) 4. Musevisa 5. Julevalsen (The Christmas Waltz) 6. Romjulsdrøm (Christmas Dream) 7. Julemorgon (Christmas Morning) 8. Ej håpe ho blir kvit i år (White Christmas) 9. Det lyser i stille grender (Light Shines From Quiet Hamlets) 10. Karl-Bertil Jonsson 11. Julesongen (The Christmas Song) |
|
"Jul på Sunnmørsk" is not just the title of the album, but the name of the group which is one of the many projects of Norwegian treasure Siril Malmedal Hauge. It's a seasonal group made up of gifted young musicians from Sunnmøre, the southernmost district of the northernmost county of western Norway. Got that? Courtesy of Wikipedia, check the image below. On the left is Norway--the portion in red being the county of Møre og Romsdal. On the right is the county of Møre og Romsdal, separated into districts. Sunnmøre is the green portion. The members of Jul på Sunnmørsk share a love of Jazz, Sunday, and Christmas (so the translation says) and, every year in December, they hold a number of performances in Sunnmøre. Jul på Sunnmørsk literally means Christmas in Sunnmøre.
Celebrating the fifth year of this tradition, the members of Jul på Sunnmørsk decided that the time had come to record a Christmas album. Their repertoire for these December shows includes carols and songs familiar to all, some familiar to people in Norway but not to Americans, and the occasional original composition. As all the songs on "Jul på Sunnmørsk" are sung in Norwegian, you might miss the fact that, while melodies may be familiar, the lyrics have often been re-written to be more in tune with the people of and life in Sunnmøre. As one small example, no one is roasting chestnuts on the open fire, but we do delight in the aroma and taste of gingerbread (we are still wondering whether reindeer really know how to fly).
Jul på Sunnmørsk
It's an odd thing to review a Jazz album where the vocals are in Norwegian. Mostly because, if you're a Jazz fan, it simply doesn't matter. You don't really listen to Jazz for the lyrics. The sound is the thing...the way it trips the light fantastic through your ears and your mind...the way it brings out the beauty of a melody, enhancing it with unexpected side-trips along the way. Every rose is as different and unique as every snowflake, yet every one is just as beautiful. Jazz is like that. Every performance is going to be different, but the sound is so beautiful. It matters less to me what Siril sings than how she uses her voice when she sings it. The sound is the thing. The voice is but another instrument.
Nonetheless, it does add another dimension to the performance to understand how the lyrics to songs we all grew up with have been customized for a very Sunnmøre audience and it is particularly relevant on "Det ekje snøv" ("Let It Snow") and "Julestemning veks ikkje på tre" ("Winter Wonderland").
As Sunnmøre is on the ocean and on the western side of the Sunnmøre Alps, it rains a lot--even in winter. So, in "Let It Snow", Siril sings about wishing for snow ("we hope for minus signs"). Instead, she sings, they get rain, sleet and slush. "This is bad," she sings. But, sigh, you can't really complain about the rain. We're used to it, she sings, and we choose to live here. Instead of "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow," it's "it's raining, it's sleeting...no snow".
"Julestemning veks ikkje på tre" may have the melody of "Winter Wonderland", but it translates as "Christmas atmosphere does not grow on three". And that confused me until I translated the rest of the lyrics. In a way, it's an extension of the second line of the original. "Are you listening?" The point being that Christmas spirit does not magically appear at the count of three; it's up to us to open our hearts, see and hear and feel what's around us, and turn that into Christmas. The song also gives us a taste of Norwegian Christmas fare...clementines and gingerbread, almonds in porridge and a pot of tea. [Edit: I've been informed that, in the dialect in which Siril sings, "tre" actually translates to "trees", not "three". So that's "Christmas atmosphere does not grow on trees".]
About the songs with which we Yanks may be unfamiliar... "Vi tenner våre lykter" ("We Light Our Lamps") was written by children's author Bjørn Rønningen and it's about playing in the snow until it's dark and time to go home (and then playing just a little longer). "Musevisa" is a song from renaissance man Alf Prøysen and celebrates Christmas Eve. Prøysen also wrote "Romjulsdrøm", along with Thoralf Borg, and the song was first released in 1968. In the version presented by Jul på Sunnmørsk, "Romjulsdrøm" has been mashed up with Charlie Parker's "Ornithology". "Det lyser i stille grender" is an old Norwegian poem by Jakob Sande, first put to music in 1948 by Lars Søraas; it has since become a familiar and beloved hymn. America has "A Charlie Brown Christmas", England has "The Snowman" and Scandinavia has "Karl-Bertil Jonsson's Christmas Eve", a 1975 animated tale of a boy who steals presents from the wealthy to give to the poor. "Karl-Bertil Jonsson" is adapted from that. And "Julemorgon" is a 100% Siril Malmedal Hauge original. She sings of "expectation under starry sky" and "a universe of Christmas flavors".
And none of what I've said so far tells you how beautiful this album from Jul på Sunnmørsk is. But you can hear that for yourself. How could my words convey the beauty of this music any better than the music itself? Siril's voice is angelic; listen to her on "The Christmas Waltz", putting songbirds to shame. I am over the moon in love with her voice. She is joined by Sondre Ferstad (harmonica), Kjetil Jerve (keyboards), Martin Morland (bass), and Henrik Lødøen (drums). And everybody shines.
I purposely chose Thanksgiving to present "Jul på Sunnmørsk". In my family, Christmas was...well, Christmas. But Thanksgiving was the big family day. And, after a huge Thanksgiving dinner, I can think of no sweeter dessert than "Jul på Sunnmørsk". It's rich, warm, scrumptious, and satisfying, but light enough that no one should object to a bite or two, no matter how full you are. Please consider taking a small taste. I think you'll be back for more. You needn't buy the CD as I did--the digital album is tasty, too--but it's there for you if you decide to take the full trip (be warned, it is a limited edition and won't be around forever).
Nonetheless, it does add another dimension to the performance to understand how the lyrics to songs we all grew up with have been customized for a very Sunnmøre audience and it is particularly relevant on "Det ekje snøv" ("Let It Snow") and "Julestemning veks ikkje på tre" ("Winter Wonderland").
As Sunnmøre is on the ocean and on the western side of the Sunnmøre Alps, it rains a lot--even in winter. So, in "Let It Snow", Siril sings about wishing for snow ("we hope for minus signs"). Instead, she sings, they get rain, sleet and slush. "This is bad," she sings. But, sigh, you can't really complain about the rain. We're used to it, she sings, and we choose to live here. Instead of "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow," it's "it's raining, it's sleeting...no snow".
"Julestemning veks ikkje på tre" may have the melody of "Winter Wonderland", but it translates as "Christmas atmosphere does not grow on three". And that confused me until I translated the rest of the lyrics. In a way, it's an extension of the second line of the original. "Are you listening?" The point being that Christmas spirit does not magically appear at the count of three; it's up to us to open our hearts, see and hear and feel what's around us, and turn that into Christmas. The song also gives us a taste of Norwegian Christmas fare...clementines and gingerbread, almonds in porridge and a pot of tea. [Edit: I've been informed that, in the dialect in which Siril sings, "tre" actually translates to "trees", not "three". So that's "Christmas atmosphere does not grow on trees".]
About the songs with which we Yanks may be unfamiliar... "Vi tenner våre lykter" ("We Light Our Lamps") was written by children's author Bjørn Rønningen and it's about playing in the snow until it's dark and time to go home (and then playing just a little longer). "Musevisa" is a song from renaissance man Alf Prøysen and celebrates Christmas Eve. Prøysen also wrote "Romjulsdrøm", along with Thoralf Borg, and the song was first released in 1968. In the version presented by Jul på Sunnmørsk, "Romjulsdrøm" has been mashed up with Charlie Parker's "Ornithology". "Det lyser i stille grender" is an old Norwegian poem by Jakob Sande, first put to music in 1948 by Lars Søraas; it has since become a familiar and beloved hymn. America has "A Charlie Brown Christmas", England has "The Snowman" and Scandinavia has "Karl-Bertil Jonsson's Christmas Eve", a 1975 animated tale of a boy who steals presents from the wealthy to give to the poor. "Karl-Bertil Jonsson" is adapted from that. And "Julemorgon" is a 100% Siril Malmedal Hauge original. She sings of "expectation under starry sky" and "a universe of Christmas flavors".
And none of what I've said so far tells you how beautiful this album from Jul på Sunnmørsk is. But you can hear that for yourself. How could my words convey the beauty of this music any better than the music itself? Siril's voice is angelic; listen to her on "The Christmas Waltz", putting songbirds to shame. I am over the moon in love with her voice. She is joined by Sondre Ferstad (harmonica), Kjetil Jerve (keyboards), Martin Morland (bass), and Henrik Lødøen (drums). And everybody shines.
I purposely chose Thanksgiving to present "Jul på Sunnmørsk". In my family, Christmas was...well, Christmas. But Thanksgiving was the big family day. And, after a huge Thanksgiving dinner, I can think of no sweeter dessert than "Jul på Sunnmørsk". It's rich, warm, scrumptious, and satisfying, but light enough that no one should object to a bite or two, no matter how full you are. Please consider taking a small taste. I think you'll be back for more. You needn't buy the CD as I did--the digital album is tasty, too--but it's there for you if you decide to take the full trip (be warned, it is a limited edition and won't be around forever).
RSS Feed
