Stev
Encyclopedia
Stev is one of the poetic forms that can be found in lyric poetry
from Scandinavia
. The English
version of the word is stave
, meaning the stressed syllable in a metric verse.
Of the gamlestev that have been preserved, most of them are from Setesdal
and øvre Telemark . This poetic form is equivalent to the metre of the medieval ballad, and is used over most of Northern Europe:
The metre in most old staves is free, and the rhyming is always on the second and fourth line.
Some gamlestev might be remnant
s of folk songs that have been split up, and thereby losing completeness.
In Telemark
, nystev have been replaced by rural
folksongs , to a great extent.
By contrast, nystev in Setesdal
have held much of their ground. Many folksongs are based on the form, which rhymes in pairs:
Previously "A good
kvedar [really had to know] knew how to stevja", wrote Geirr Lystrup (in 1980). ("To stevjast is a social form of
songkamp ["song" + "battle"], where the object is to know many stev so one will not be at loss (or become perplexed)."
A kveder from Setesdal, when performing stev, generally sings more slowly, than a kveder from Telemark. One reason for this, may be that Setesdal stev are often more meditative ( or elegiac
), in regard to the stev text.
's performance at "liberation of Norway" concert that was held 1945, in the ceremonial hall (the "Aula") at the University of Oslo
.
In 1983, a member of Norway's national team of football, Åge Hareide
, was honored with a stev (performed by another member of the team, Svein Mathisen
) related to Hareides receipt of a gilded watch (gullklokka — signifying 25 matches played for Norway's national team). The stev was performed at the the banquet in Yugoslavia following a football match of two national teams, and the performer held the head of the lamb that had been eaten at the banquet, while he performed from a tabletop
. (The watch was received before the match.)
Lyric poetry
Lyric poetry is a genre of poetry that expresses personal and emotional feelings. In the ancient world, lyric poems were those which were sung to the lyre. Lyric poems do not have to rhyme, and today do not need to be set to music or a beat...
from Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
. The English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
version of the word is stave
Stave
Stave can refer to:*Staff , a set of five horizontal lines and four spaces used in musical notation*Stave church, a Medieval wooden church with post and beam construction prevalent in Norway*The individual wood strips that form the sides of a barrel...
, meaning the stressed syllable in a metric verse.
Gamlestev
- gamlestev (old stave) is the oldest type. It is likely that gamlestev were originally danced. Stanzas in gamlestev meter,were already established around the end of the 13th century.
Of the gamlestev that have been preserved, most of them are from Setesdal
Setesdal
Setesdal is a valley and a traditional district in Aust-Agder County in southern Norway. It consists of the municipalities of Bykle, Valle, Bygland, Iveland, and Evje og Hornnes....
and øvre Telemark . This poetic form is equivalent to the metre of the medieval ballad, and is used over most of Northern Europe:
- Oh who will shoe my bonny footThe Lass of Roch Royal-Synopsis:A woman comes to Gregory's castle, pleading to be let in; she is either pregnant or with a newborn son. His mother turns her away; sometimes she tells her that he went to sea, and she goes to follow him and dies in shipwreck. Gregory wakes and says he dreamed of her...
- and who will glove my handThe Lass of Roch Royal-Synopsis:A woman comes to Gregory's castle, pleading to be let in; she is either pregnant or with a newborn son. His mother turns her away; sometimes she tells her that he went to sea, and she goes to follow him and dies in shipwreck. Gregory wakes and says he dreamed of her...
- and who will lace my middle waistThe Lass of Roch Royal-Synopsis:A woman comes to Gregory's castle, pleading to be let in; she is either pregnant or with a newborn son. His mother turns her away; sometimes she tells her that he went to sea, and she goes to follow him and dies in shipwreck. Gregory wakes and says he dreamed of her...
- with a long, long linen bandThe Lass of Roch Royal-Synopsis:A woman comes to Gregory's castle, pleading to be let in; she is either pregnant or with a newborn son. His mother turns her away; sometimes she tells her that he went to sea, and she goes to follow him and dies in shipwreck. Gregory wakes and says he dreamed of her...
.
The metre in most old staves is free, and the rhyming is always on the second and fourth line.
Some gamlestev might be remnant
Remnant
Remnant may refer to:* Remnant , in the Bible** Remnant , remnant concepts within the Seventh-day Adventist Church*The Remnant * Remnant...
s of folk songs that have been split up, and thereby losing completeness.
Nystev
- Nystev (new stave) have probably been around since about year 1700. "It is the Norwegian counterpart to blues from AmericaBluesBlues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
", wrote Geirr Lystrup (in 1980).
In Telemark
Telemark
is a county in Norway, bordering Vestfold, Buskerud, Hordaland, Rogaland and Aust-Agder. The county administration is in Skien. Until 1919 the county was known as Bratsberg amt.-Location:...
, nystev have been replaced by rural
Rural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
folksongs , to a great extent.
By contrast, nystev in Setesdal
Setesdal
Setesdal is a valley and a traditional district in Aust-Agder County in southern Norway. It consists of the municipalities of Bykle, Valle, Bygland, Iveland, and Evje og Hornnes....
have held much of their ground. Many folksongs are based on the form, which rhymes in pairs:
- Den dag kjem aldri at eg deg gløymer
- for når eg søver, eg om deg drøymer.
- og natt og dag er du like nær,
- men best eg ser deg når myrkt det er.
Omkved
- omkved (refrain in ballads) , includes innstev , etterstev , mellomsleng and ettersleng.
Slåttestev
- slåttestev (tune-staves) are instrumental dancetune songs. This is dancetunes with a short text. Sometimes the staves grows to longer songs. In IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, an equivalent would be The Rocky Road to Dublin, a tune which is both a dance-tune and a song.
Hermestev
- hermestev (imitating staves) are often referred to as parody-quote stev. These contain WellerismWellerismWellerisms, named after Sam Weller in Charles Dickens's The Pickwick Papers, make fun of established clichés and proverbs by showing that they are wrong in certain situations, often when taken literally. In this sense, wellerisms that include proverbs are a type of anti-proverb...
s.
Performers
A person who can perform a stev, is known as a kveder (or "kvedar"), in Norwegian.Previously "A good
kvedar [really had to know] knew how to stevja", wrote Geirr Lystrup (in 1980). ("To stevjast is a social form of
songkamp ["song" + "battle"], where the object is to know many stev so one will not be at loss (or become perplexed)."
A kveder from Setesdal, when performing stev, generally sings more slowly, than a kveder from Telemark. One reason for this, may be that Setesdal stev are often more meditative ( or elegiac
Elegiac
Elegiac refers either to those compositions that are like elegies or to a specific poetic meter used in Classical elegies. The Classical elegiac meter has two lines, making it a couplet: a line of dactylic hexameter, followed by a line of dactylic pentameter...
), in regard to the stev text.
Notable performances
In 1945, Aslak BrekkeAslak Brekke
Aslak Brekke was a prominent vocalist of one of the Scandinavian poetic genres that is referred to as stev.As a folk music singer, he was also well-known.He was born in Vinje, Telemark....
's performance at "liberation of Norway" concert that was held 1945, in the ceremonial hall (the "Aula") at the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
.
In 1983, a member of Norway's national team of football, Åge Hareide
Åge Hareide
Åge Fridtjof Hareide is a Norwegian football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of Viking FK.-Playing career:During his playing career, Hareide played for Hødd, Molde, Manchester City and Norwich City....
, was honored with a stev (performed by another member of the team, Svein Mathisen
Svein Mathisen
Svein Erling "Matta" Mathisen was a footballer from Norway. With the exception of a short spell with Scottish club Hibernian in 1978, "Matta" played for IK Start throughout his career, where he won the Norwegian league title in 1978 and 1980...
) related to Hareides receipt of a gilded watch (gullklokka — signifying 25 matches played for Norway's national team). The stev was performed at the the banquet in Yugoslavia following a football match of two national teams, and the performer held the head of the lamb that had been eaten at the banquet, while he performed from a tabletop
Tabletop
Tabletop can refer to:* Table Tops, a free newspaper for Australian Army troops in World War II* Table Top Mountain * Tabletop, New South Wales* Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa* Tepui, flat top mountains in South America...
. (The watch was received before the match.)
Literature
- "Old words to old tunes - Old Norse HavamalHávamálHávamál is presented as a single poem in the Poetic Edda, a collection of Old Norse poems from the Viking age. The poem, itself a combination of different poems, is largely gnomic, presenting advice for living, proper conduct and wisdom....
to Norwegian stev and ballad tunes" in "Folkemusikkinnsamling - Skrift nr.16 - 2002"(ISSN 0800-3734), p. 109; author: Jon Storm-MathisenJon Storm-MathisenJon Storm-Mathisen is a highly cited Norwegian neuroscientist known for his work on the morphology and immunocytochemistry of the central nervous system. He is a professor of medicine at the Department of Anatomy at the University of Oslo.-External links:*...
, publisher: Norsk Folkemusikklag