Bröderna Björkman – länkar till 1700-talets vokala traditioner

Abstract

The Björkman Brothers – A Link to the Vocal Traditions of the 1800:s
The article deals with two elderly brothers from the very north of Sweden whose song repertory were recorded by the author in 1975. They were the last members of a very severe separatist sect with devotional meetings and with very special song traditions. The brothers had never been singing with instrumental accompaniment, not even organ. They passed on an old singing style that was quite different from ordinary hymn singing. Since childhood they had been singing from three books only: the Swedish hymn book from 1695 and two pietist song books from the middle of the 18th century. The pietist song books were widely spread among dissenters in the 18th and 19th centuries. The song books had only texts, no music. But they were meant to be sung according to instructions. The melodies of these songs have never since been written down, so there is a gap in our knowledge of the religious singing of the 18th century. Possibly may the recordings with the Björkman brothers help us to know a bit more of the 18th century melody repertory. We get some hints in that direction by comparing their melodies with the melody networks that we find in the broadsides of the 18th century. The article is an attempt at showing some possibilities in dealing with these
unique recordings.