Sondre Bratland

Sondre Bratland (born 11 September 1938) is a Norwegian folk singer, song teacher and Government scholar. He has performed traditional songs from Setesdal and Telemark, collected religious folk tunes and composed music to songs by poets as Olav H. Hauge and Tarjei Vesaas. His album ''Pilegrimens Sangbog'' from 1982 earned him Spellemannprisen.

Life and career

Born in Vinje, where his father was a shopkeeper and his mother ran a hostel, Sondre Bratland grew up in an area and in a family with strong folk song traditions, especially among women. The song style is referred to as kveding. His mother sang at home and his aunt Brita Bratland was a folk singer who recorded songs for Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. While influenced by the local song traditions, Bratland never studied it in his youth. He became a teacher.Sanger mellom Betlehem og Vinje
Agenda.316.no. Retrieved 15 December 2013

His interest in folk singing was revoked through listening to the NRK radio program ''Folkemusikkhalvtimen'' (English: Folk music half-hour), where he became particularly fascinated by the folk singer Ragnar Vigdal. He then started studying and collecting folk tunes; among those he worked with were Brita Bratland, Ragnar Vigdal from Luster and Tallak Haslemo from Bykle.Svein Arne Myhren Teglan
Sondre Bratland
Allkunne.no. Retrieved 15 December 2013

He taught Arve Moen Bergset folk music singing for eight years.

In 1997, he was appointed Government scholar by the Parliament of Norway; allowing him to focusing full-time on music. He also headed the folk culture study department at the Telemark University College for five years.

Bratland has held concerts in more than 600 churches in Norway, but also performs in other venues and abroad.

The folk singer Ingebjørg Harman Bratland is daughter of a cousin of his.

Bratland was decorated Commander of the Order of St. Olav in 2019.

Albums

Sondre Bratland released his first album ''Pilegrimenens Sangbog'' (The Pilgrims' songbook) in 1982. It was recorded in Gjerpen church, Skien, where several of his later albums also are recorded. Iver Kleive played the organ The recording was characterised by improvisations and the album has been praised for introducing a new way to perform hymns. Bratland was awarded the Spellemanns Award for the album.

''Inn I Draumen'', recorded in 1982, is a collection of lullabies. Most of them Norwegian folk tunes, but the album also included the song ''Gjev meg handa d''i which is based on an Irish folk tune ( Down by the Sally Gardens) and lyrics by Bratland. Gjev meg handa di has become one of his most popular songs. The song has been recorded by other artists and is also used in funerals and weddings. It was considered for inclusion in '' Norsk salmebok 2013'', a Church of Norway hymn book, but after a debate the Church council decided against inclusion on the grounds that the song lacked an explicit religious dimension.

In 1992 he released the album ''Rosa frå Betlehem'' (English: The Rose of Bethlehem). The album was recorded in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.Tomm Kristiansen

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