SISSEL performed this song "HERRE GUD" (Lord, our God) at the occasion of a TV CONCERT filmed in the FAROE Islands and released in 1991. Sissel was already a well-known singer at that time, especially in Norway and in BERGEN, her hometown. The orchestra is directed by Per Egil HOVLAND.
The whole TV program, produced by Stageway, lasted about 70 minutes and was made of two parts. The first one, called "Med Sissel til Kirkjubø", was filmed partially outdoors in various places of interest of the Faroe Islands (mainly Kirkjubø and Vestmann areas), and partially indoors, in the concert hall of the Nordic House of Tórshavn (Streymoy island). The second part, which ends with the posted song, was called "Sissel i Christianskirkjuni" and filmed in "King Christian's Church", in Klaksvik (Borðoy island).
Sissel performance was never released in any album or DVD later on, and to my knowledge, only very few recordings of the concert still exist today.
I already posted in 2007 several videos of this TV concert (see on KZfaq) and started recently remastering the original recording to get a better quality and save all what could still be possibly saved from the old VHS tape (more than 20 years old now !). Lyrics have been added during the edition phase.
Thank you to Mikael, from Denmark, who passed me some interesting information related to the "HERRE GUD", which encouraged me to better understand the genesis of the song and its history.
I hope you will ENJOY IT.
Plo94 - July 2012
"HERRE GUD" is a popular religious folksong from PETTER DASS (1647-1707), a renowned Norwegian poet and Lutheran clergyman who composed several hymns and poetry. Most of his writings were not published until after his death. "HERRE GUD" was written in 1698 (1699 ?) and first printed in Copenhagen in 1715. It was initially a catechism song.
In the version performed by Sissel, the song is made of four verses (n°1, 4, 5 and 8) from a 16-verse song named "HELLIGT VORDE DIT NAVN" (Hallowed be Thy name), which takes its departure from Martin Luther's explanation of the first petition of the Lord's Prayer. Dass actually wrote a whole Hymn entitled "HERRENS BØN FADER Vor Forfattet udi ni Sange" (The Lord's Prayer), which encompasses a series of 9 songs including the one mentioned above. It is worth noting that the first song, not surprisingly named "FADER VOR, DU SOM ER I HIMMELEN" (Our Father, who art in Heaven), is the basis of "BLANT ALLE GUDER" (Among all the Gods), another famous song performed by Sissel during her TV concert. A "revised" version of "HERRE GUD", with only three verses (n° 1, 5 and 8) is included in the Norwegian Hymn Book** (as Hymn number 7). These verses have been reworked in 1909 by Gustav Margerth Jensen and differ slightly from Petter Dass original. The verse n°4 added by Sissel in this live version of the song mentions a lot of sea creatures giving praise to God. The Lord's Prayer Hymn can be found in Petter Dass's book "KATECHISMUS SANGE" - pages 173 to 226.
The music of "Herre Gud" is from a Norwegian folk melody (1877). Nearly one hundred melodic versions of the song have been written down so far. If the song is very popular in the Nordic countries (it was for example performed by the Norwegian Student Choral Society at the occasion of a Royal wedding in 1968), it was discovered more recently in many other countries following the worldwide success of the 1987 Gabriel Axel's film "BABETTE'S FEAST". In the movie, the song is used to underline the deep religious atmosphere existing in the small Danish village where the main scenes of the story take place.
PER EGIL HOVLAND, who was directing the orchestra during the TV concert, is regarded today as one of the major renewers of Norwegian church music and has contributed to the design of both the Norwegian hymn book and the liturgy of the Norwegian Church. He has also composed a considerable number of profane works.
HERRE GUD LYRICS (as in Sissel's song)
Herre Gud, ditt dyre navn og ære
over verden høyt i akt skal være,
og alle sjele, de trette træle,
alt som har mæle, de skal fortælle
din ære.
Ja før GUD sin Ære skal forlise,
Før skal Hav og grommen Hval ham prise,
Samt og Tanteyen, som løber leyen,
Steenbid og Seyen og Torsk og Skreyen,
og Niise.
Gud er Gud, om alle land lå øde,
Gud er Gud, om alle mand var døde.
Om slekter svimler blant stjernestimler
i høye himler utallig vrimler
Guds grøde.
Høye hall og dype dal skal vike
jord og himmel falle skal tillike,
hvert fjell, hver tinde skal brått forsvinne,
men opp skal rinne, som solen skinne,
Guds rike!
REFERENCES: Petter Dass's book "KATECHISMUS SANGE"
www.nb.no/utlevering/contentvi...