Ta:lik recording company has some truly neat videos that they've been putting on their YouTube channel.
Here is a silent video (that's right, there's no sound!) that's meant to feature the hardingfele fiddler Ola O. Reishagen from Vestre Slidre in Valdres.
He was known as Oscar Hamry after he emigrated to the USA. After coming to Minnesota, he settled in the Northfield / Faribault area, where Multe Music comes from. Maybe that's why I enjoy dancing Valdresspringar so much. Perhaps there is actually something in the water here…
What I find even compelling about the video is that it contains good footage of people dancing Valdresspringar (the traditional "spring dance" native to the Valdres valley) and laus (the men's show-off dance also known as halling). And since this is from 1939 — prior to WWII — it really captures a moment in time.
Apparently the dancers are Jøger Quale, Reidar Qualley and their respective wives. Jøger Quale's son, Thorwald (Thor) was a driving force behind the founding of the Hardanger Fiddle Association of America.
But about the video…
The women in bunads ( the Norwegian regional costumes) are actually wearing what is commonly known as the "Hardanger drakt". Prior to a resurgence of interest in and serious research of the individual costumes of various Norwegian valleys, many Norwegian women followed the fashion set by Queen Maud early in her reign and adopted a somewhat simplified version of the Hardanger bunad as the "national costume".
This "tradition" was adopted by many Norwegians who came to the USA and by Norwegian-Americans who shortened the skirt to try to make it more fashionable. This is why you have a number of Norwegian-Americans claiming to have a "bunad" (a true regional costume) when what they really have is a "folkedrakt", a dress in folk style meant to resemble a true bunad. (Confused? Just wait until I start writing about bunads!)
For those who have studied and learned Valdresspringar, the video is a bit of a revelation. Notice the hand patterns, the footwork (and how it differs from the style of some of today's Valdres dancers!). It's definitely lively, even without the sound!
I love how the film actually cuts to some footage of the footwork. Later, we see two women dancing the dance together — not at all unusual in Norwegian tradition.
The laus is a delight. Here you have the two Qualley men showing off. Even though they may not be as spry as the young turks we usually see dancing laus, they have a captivating spirit about them — as well as some interesting moves.
The video ends by panning along a bench of five hardanger fiddle players, Hamry among them. I would really love to know who all the other fiddlers are in the film. It's possible that a couple of them are from the Smedal family as they were friends of Hamry's in America.
I'll defintely be writing more about Hamry another time. And if you're in the Northfield/Faribault area and know something of the family, please contact me!
