Have you ever looked out over a lake at night, wondering if that splash you heard was something to worry about?  Or the shriek and moan of the wind during a storm on the coast? Nordic folk have long had explanations for unexplainable things through folktales of strange and sometimes creepy supernatural creatures. In this podcast we look at the folktales that describe the mosekone and lygtemænd (bog woman and lantern men) of Danish marshes, the fearsome draug and sjøorm (sea spirit and sea serpent) of the northern coast of Norway, the musical fossegrim (water sprite) that inhabits Swedish waterfalls, and the treacherous horse-like nykur (nixie or nøkk) in the lakes of the Faroe Islands and Iceland.  We include a tale by Hans Christian Andersen along the way. Please navigate to nordicontap.com to read the complete show notes, see pictures of these creatures, find links to more stories; nd while you're there, take our listener survey to help us make podcasts that you want to hear.  So....pull up a chair for 40 minutes of stories we tell around the hearth late at night!

Troll Magic: Hidden Folk from the Mountains and Forests of Norway, is a fantastic book of drawings and stories by Theodor Kittelsen with depictions of all the creatures in this podcast and many more. Of all the folktale illustrators of the late 1800s and early 1900s, Kittelsen, more than any other, showed us what Nordic supernatural creatures looked like. Most illustrators then contributed pictures to collections of Asbjørnson and Moe folktales, as did this artist, but in Troll Magic, Kittelsen writes his own stories to go with his illustrations. I wrote a review of the book for the Norwegian American.

Folktale sources for this podcast include Scandinavian Folk Belief and Legend (Reimund Kvideland and Henning Sehmsdorf, ed.), Icelandic Folktales and Legends (Jacqueline Simpson), Swedish Legends and Folktales (John Lindow, contrib.), Folktales of Norway (Reidar Christiansen ed, Pat Shaw Iversen trans.), Danish Folk Tales (Svend Grundtvig, et. al., ed.; J Christian Bay, trans.), and The Girl Who Trod on the Loaf (Hans Christian Andersen, trans. Jean Hersholt). My other go-to folktale collection is Scandinavian Folk and Fairy Tales (Clair Booss, ed.), the source for stories in many of my other podcasts.

Rachel Nesvig, the accomplished hardanger fiddler and violinist, has a website at rachelnesvig.com. The brief snippets of her work played in this podcast (in the section about the fossegrim) came from this recording of a home concert on May 17, 2021 in honor of Norwegian Constitution Day. A special opportunity to hear her describe and play the hardanger fiddle is in our in our podcast, The Hardanger Fiddle: Lynn Berg and Rachel Nesvig. In our opinion, Rachel could give the fossegrim a few pointers on how to play the fiddle.

This version of Sjöormen i Aalesund (The Sea Serpent in Ålesund) was included in Troldskab (Troll Magic) and shows fishers preparing for the huge wave caused by the sea serpent, 1877. Kittelsen drew at least one other version of this picture. https://www.nasjonalmuseet.no/samlingen/objekt/NG.K_H.B.06922

At the top, above, is Næken (The stream man or fossegrim) by Johan Tiren [Wikipedia Commons], hanging in a Stockholm art museum.Can you imagine what the young fiddler is listening to? You can barely see it, just to the right of the small bush. Curiously, Johan Tiren also painted at least one other version of this scene. That one is called Jämtlands Sagen (Folktale from the Jämtland Region) and features a much older fiddler and an even less visible næk/fossegrim. Which version fits your mental image of the fossegrim best?

The lower picture is Theodor Kittelsen's Fossegrimen (The Water Sprite)pen and ink sketch , 1887, Wikimedia Commons. The fossegrim was often depicted as a naked man playing under a waterfall.

The fossegrim (sometimes considered a nøkk) is sometimes depicted as a harpist, as in Johan Zacharias Blackstadius's painting (top image) of Två bondflickor som lyssnar till strömkarlens spel (Two farm girls who listen to the water sprites enchantment) at the left (Wikipedia).  He's also seen in Stefan Sinding's sculpture of the grim from 1901, in the waterfall/fountain under the statue of Ole Bull (lower photo, taken by an anonymous photographer on Flickr) . It's from the fossegrim that Bull allegedly learned how to become one of the world's most famous and accomplished violinists.

An engraving of a lygtemann or lantern man, above, glowing inside the bog rushes, by Josiah Wood Whymper, 1849, from his book Phenomenon of Nature at the Science Museum Group. Called ignis fatuss in Latin, for "foolish fire", the lyktemaenn (plural) are phosphorescent lights hovering over the water in marshes. Unlike the draug, sjøorm, and fossegrim, these lights seem to be a real phenomenon in nature. They are, unfortunately, rarely observed anymore, due to the draining of marshes and swamps around the world.

The nykur of Iceland and the Faroes, called a nøkk or bäkehäst elsewhere. These two illustrations by Theodor Kittelsen (Nøkken som hvit hest or The water horse/nixie as a white horse), shows an innocent-looking white horse (top illustration) that is more than happy to let you ride on him (bottom illustration). If you do, you go to your doom. See also Countess Sica's nykur illustration in A Book of Creatures and note the backwards hooves!

This isn't specifically of the mosekone or bog woman, but shows such a witch "brewing" the fog (steam), as in the expression, "mosekone brygger". From an 1891 drawing, artist unknown, at Open Clip Art.

The Seattle Aquarium is expanding to include sharks from Indonesia. Is this for the entertainment value or is there an educational component as well? What is the role of aquariums regarding public education, anyway?  Is it to appreciate and have empathy for the fish, otters, seals, penguins, etc. or motivate conservation and sustainable behavior? At the same time, Seattle's sister city in Norway (Bergen) is planning to completely rebuild the National Aquarium in a new location.

Join us as we visit the Bergen Aquarium to ask these questions about the role of the aquariums today.  First we take a tour with zookeeper Joachim Ekeli to hear about flatfish, the national fish, penguins, the "flowers of the sea", and the tall ship, Statsraad Lemkuhl, sailing the world on the One Ocean Expedition. 

Then we meet the aquarium's CEO, Aslak Sverdrup, to learn the history of the aquarium and its connection to the Institute of Marine Research. Who owns the aquarium now, how will a new one get built, and where will it be? What will it take to get all the various jurisdictions, including business, industry, academia, and the public onboard, to build the World Ocean Center known simply as "O"? 

This podcast is a combination of fascinating marine biology, a study in how humans affect their environment, and the political will and fortitude necessary to create an even better National Aquarium in the future. 

Check out our links and photos at our episode website at nordicontap.com so see Joachim, Aslak, the Lemkuhl, and other neat things.

The lur is one of the great folk instruments of Scandinavia and was traditionally used by women at mountain farms, or sæters, in the summertime to gather the herds of cows, sheep, or goats.  Less well known is the role of the lur in the story of Prillar Guri, who saved Norway from invaders at the Battle of Kringen in August of 1612. 

Join me as I interview the marvelous storyteller, musician, and player of the lur, Dr. Joan Haaland Paddock of Linfield University, who explains the features of the instrument, the natural scale that it plays, the origins of the Kalmar War, and the legend of the heroine, Prillar Guri.  History has failed to record the great contributions of women in peacetime as well as wartime, so we celebrate the story as they do in Sel Municipality in Gudbrandsdalen, Norway.  As part of this discussion, you'll learn why the bunads, or festive folk dress of Gudbrandsdalen today, are include the tartan of the Scottish clan Sinclair.  Visit us at nordicontap.com to learn more about the arquebus, budstikke, Dr. Paddocks other videos, and info about the Battle of Kringen.

The celebrated hero who sailed the Kon-Tiki across the Pacific, wrote several best-selling books, who inspired a whole generation of archeologists is one of Norway's most public figures.  But Heyerdahl's ideas about Polynesian migration (among others) were not embraced by the scientific community and we set off to understand why. Was Heyerdahl a "fringe scientist"?  Join us as we interview Polynesian archeologist Dr. Matthew Spriggs and examine what Jo Ann Van Tilburg wrote about Heyerdahl.  It's a lesson on how we gain knowledge through scientific evidence.

Visit our episode website at nordicontap.com to read biographies of Thor Heyerdahl, watch the Kon-Tiki Expedition video, find links to pages about the research of archeologists Dr. Matthew Spriggs and Dr. Jo Ann Van Tilburg, and learn how you can join the ranks of citizen scientists (even without a college degree) to help researchers collect valuable scientific data.

Have you ever wondered what Norwegian folktales sound like in Norwegian, as they were written in the late 1800s by Asbjørnson and Moe? Join us for this telling of the classic De Tre Bukene Bruse or The Three Billy Boats Gruff and Småguttene Som Traff Trollene i Hedalskogen or The Boys Who Met the Trolls in Hedal Woods, in both Norwegian and English.  We also hear the well-known Scandinavian favorite (song), Pål Sine Høner, played by Seattles Winter Band. Be sure to stop by nordicontap.com to find illustrations that go with the stories and links to where you can read the stories yourself, sample Winter Band favorites, and order the sheet music for Ingela's Waltz (our intro song). Help us make the programs you want to hear by completing our listener survey.

In 1923, a young Norwegian named Peter Sundness emigrated to the Seattle Area and, after several years, brought his wife and children over too. Pete’s daughter Ruthi Sundness Winter, later born in Seattle, fondly remembers playing Scandinavian music together with her family, a tradition that has continued after marrying Mike Winter, whose own family had a similar tradition. 

The result is the present day Winter Band that plays Scandinavian favorites that celebrate both life in America as well as "back home".  In this podcast you’ll meet Ruthi, and hear about her discovery of writings and tapes made by her father long ago, detailing his adventures as a fisherman, logger, trapper, and whaler -  a life that Ruthi had never known about him. 

Join us as we talk about her father’s dangerous occupations as a young immigrant, about growing up Norwegian-American, and about how music and the stories they convey bind a culture -- and all of us -- together.

The band plays Søstrene Fra Flatholmen Fyr, a song about a daring rescue in 1894 of a shipwreck near Flatholmen Lighthouse near Stavangar, Norway.  Please see this podcast's episode webpage at nordicontap.com for more information about this song, about the band, and audio clips and videos.

Laura Loge, Nordic operatic soprano.

Edvard Grieg, Norway's greatest composer. 

Henrik Ibsen, Norway's greatest playwright. 

A trio that comes together through Ibsen's play, Peer Gynt, and Grieg's incidental music for that play.  Laura sings the role of Gynt's long and abiding love, Solveig. 

Join us as we learn how Laura first sang Solveig's song at the age of 14, and how this music followed her as she studied Norwegian, Italian, and classical music to become a talented, accomplished classical singer, sharing her love of Greig through concertizing and school outreach.  

In this podcast Laura gives a brief summary of Ibsen's Peer Gynt, originally a hero from Norwegian folklore, who became the basis of Ibsen's anti-hero in his legendary Norwegian play.  We also learn more about Grieg's music in general and the magic and images it creates of the Norwegian landscape, nature, and folklore.

We finish the podcast with Laura's performance of Solveig's song  (from Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite #2)  in 2017.  Check out the episode website for links to more of Laura's recordings, websites, photos etc. at nordicontap.com/laura-loge-grieg-ibsen-and-solveigs-song . 

Perhaps the most portable instrument in the world that can play almost any musical genre is the accordion. As a “free reed instrument” how does it really work? And there are many kinds including the concertina, torader, and piano accordion.

Join us as we meet Birgit and Phil Ages from the Seattle Area who explain how accordions work, show what a mazurka, hambo, and schottische sound like, and explain how they formed the Folk Voice Band. This popular group plays in annual venues such as Seattle’s Folklife Festival, Naselle’s Finnfest, Leavenworth’s Octoberfest, and the Skandia Midsummer Festival.

Long associated with polkas and the instrument of choice for the Scandinavian-Americans Myron Floren and Stan Boreson, the accordion has become an essential part of the sound in folk music from many different cultures.  Join us!

Every year before the pandemic, the Bothell Sons of Norway lodge members marched in Seattle's 17th of May Parade, as well as Bothell's Fourth of July Parade.  In addition to a Viking ship float and a convertible sports car with the princess waving from the back, is a 7 foot tall, imposing, ugly, but goofy troll.  This elaborate costume was created by Mike Nelson and has delighted parade-goers, especially children, for  years. Then Carl Stavney was invited to inhabit the troll costume and discovered the magic that the costume imparts.  

Join us for the story of how the troll was first envisioned, how it was built, what it's like to skitter back and forth along the parade route to shake hands and give high-fives, and how the Parade Troll has become a beloved part of the Seattle and Bothell parades for over 20 years.  Now in 2022, the troll returns.

We finish with a rousing rendition of the Norwegian national anthem, "Ja, Vi Elsker Dette Landet" in honor of Syttende Mai, or Norwegian Constitution Day, on May 17th every year.

See extras (photos, video) about the troll on our website, The Parade Troll – Nordic on Tap – The Podcast Website.

Don "Jerry" Pugnetti Jr, a long-time journalist, has written a fictional account of a Norwegian man and his compatriots who join the Norwegian Resistance during World War II.  Jerry based the book on real stories he collected from his won relatives who were there in the early 1940s, and in the Resistance themselves. In this podcast we interview Jerry about his writing the book and learn about the true events that are mentioned in it.  We finish up with a reinlender called "Holingen", played by the Nordahl Grieg Spelemanslag.

See extra material and links on our website at A Coat Dyed Black and the Norwegian Resistance – Don ”Jerry” Pugnetti Jr. – Nordic on Tap – The Podcast Website.