Snikkarvalsen liner notes in English

This record is an hommage to Hardanger fiddle player Salve Austenå (b. 1927). We are very happy that he wanted to join us to record the tunes we learned from him. He is mainly known for his older repertoire of Gangar- and Springar-tunes, but he also knows music for round dances and it is this part of his playing we present here. We have tried to follow his style closely and only added our own tonal shadings.

1. Klunkaren (The plucker), schottische
Salve also calls this tune "Ola Svennsson" and knows a verse his great-aunt Valborg sang about her husband Ola.

2. Traveller's waltz after the Fredriksens
The brothers Nils and Fredirk Fredirksen were well known fiddle players from tinkers' decent. They must have spread quite a few round dance tunes in the south.

3. Old Schottische
name comes from a special type of choreographed "reinlender".

4. Slarkjen, "hamburg"-polka
Salve learned this tune from his uncle Sven Austenå. It uses standard violin tuning.

5. Naustdals-march
This stems from western Norway, but is also played on the south coast, e.g. by Sigurd Fjeldstad on
standard fiddle

6. The finger-less
Salve learned this one from Olav Straume of Fyresdal in Telemark, but he says that his uncle played it, too. The lyrics are from the "backwards song" where the the finger-less plays the piano

7. Was it you?, waltz
This one is played all over Norway, in many different versions. The lyrics are "Was it you or was it me who made this dance so nice?

8. Tuned-down schottische

9. The Tempter
This waltz came to Tovdal on a 78 RPM record, either with accordian playing or with Sveinung Kleppe playing the Hardanger Fiddle. According to Salve it was a big hit right before WWII.

10. There was an old lady
Salve learned this in Arendal when he was playing for the local Youth club. The melody is a version of the German Oh, Du lieber Augustin.

11. Valborg's schottische
is named after Salve's great aunt who sang many dance tunes. Others play it as "imeland and Grimeland".

12. Åni Smeland's waltz
This one was composed by fiddle player and poet Åni Smeland from Gjøvdal. It has close "relatives" in Numedal which may indicate that Smeland's friend Ander Ødegård may have been the inspiration.

13. Little Boy
This schottische, too, may have come to the area with Anders Ødegård. The lyrics say "Little Boy hasn't had a whooping in 15 years, but tomorrow the switch will get him.

14. Bridal march after Svenn Dale
Salve did not have a title for this tune. It was singer Anne Sandnes who called it "Old Svenn's".

15. The one the tinker hummed for his dog
Salve never said where his father learned this waltz, but he remembers tinkers traveling up Tovdal and playing fiddles when he was little.

16. The Mouse Song
This schottische became known all over Norway when Alf Prøysen put lyrics to it about a family of mice celebrating Christmas.

17. The Carpenter's Waltz
Salve knows only one line to this tune: "Then he started glueing, and that was done within an hour."

18. The Madman
This polka is suposed to have been composed by Olav Straume while he was in America, but one can find the same melody in a Swedish bridal march.
Feleboga & Salve Austenå - Apple Blossom Music 001 (Jan 25, 2010)
See Feleboga here:
find us on: