Icelandic Folk Song Suite No. 1
Kenley Kristofferson
Ensemble: Concert Band
Grade: 3
Duration: 05:45
Year of Composition: 2015
Premiered by: Winnipeg Wind Ensemble (Jacquie Dawson, conductor)
Date of Premiere: May 3, 2015
Publisher: Grand Mesa
Year of Publication: 2020
Publisher Catalog Number: GMM475
Available: Yes
How to Acquire: Publisher, Purchase
Links:
Piccolo
Flutes 1,2
Oboes 1,2
Bassoons 1,2
B♭ Clarinets 1,2,3
B♭ Bass Clarinet
E♭ Alto Saxes 1,2
B♭ Tenor Sax
E♭ Baritone Sax
B♭ Trumpets 1,2,3
F Horns 1,2,3,4
Trombones 1,2
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
Double Bass
Timpani
Percussion 1 (Snare Drum, Bass Drum)
Percussion 2 (Crash Cymbals, Bells, Suspended Cymbal)
Percussion 3 (Triangle)
The complete suite is in four movements. This publication contains the first two movements, and the final two movements are published as Icelandic Folk Song Suite No. 2.
I. Ólafur Liljurós
II. Bí Bí og Blaka
III. Krummavísur
IV. Á Sprengisandi
Program Notes:
In the tradition of Vaughan Williams’ English Folk Song Suite, Canadian writer Kristofferson has contributed this rich new work based on Icelandic Folk Songs to the concert band repertoire. The first movement, "Ólafur Liljurós", is based on a musical tale of a traveler’s encounter with an elf-maiden, and mixes moments of sprightliness with a dream-like middle section. The second movement, "Bí bí og blaka", features an alto saxophone soloist in a slower tempo movement with lush scoring.
(Grand Mesa Music)
In the repertoire of concert band and wind ensemble music, the folk song suite holds deep meaning and importance. Icelandic Folk Song Suite is my contribution to that legacy in our field and is, very much at its heart, a love letter to it. This work endeavours to new musical work set in this traditional structure to celebrate making music in the concert band and wind ensemble settings.
As folk song suites often use national music as a connecting thread through it (like Vaughan William’s English Folk Song Suite, for example), I incorporate traditional Icelandic folk music here, and for two reasons. The first is that there isn’t much Icelandic music in our repertoire and there is room for a meaningful contribution there. The second is that Icelandic music is very close to my heart. While my nationality is Canadian, my heritage is Scandinavian—primarily Icelandic, with a dash of Norwegian and Swedish.
I grew up in a small town called Gimli, Manitoba in the prairie region of Canada. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, scores of immigrants fled Iceland escaping volcanic eruption, deterioration in the climate and growing conditions, and an epidemic infecting their sheep. Many who chose to leave and many found their way to Canada and established a colony in Manitoba called “New Iceland”, with Gimli as its main settlement—the town where I grew up.
All of the melodic material in this suite stems from four Icelandic folk songs: "Ólafur Liljurós" (Movement I),
"Bí bí og blaka" (II), "Krummavísur" (III), and "Á Sprengisandi" (IV).
"Ólafur Liljurós" recounts the tale of a man riding alone who gets lost in the woods and meets an elf-maiden. She tempts him to stay and live with the elves, but he won’t renounce his life and faith. Before he leaves, she begs him for one last kiss and stabs him with a knife as he leans in. Wounded and bleeding, he makes it home to his mother and sister, but dies later that night.
On a lighter note, "Bí bí og blaka" is a lullabye about children staying up past their bedtimes and sneaking out to the edge of the mountain to see the lambs playing.
(Kenley Kristofferson)
