''Fader Bergström, stäm upp och klinga'' (Father Bergström, start playing and sounding) is one of the Swedish poet and performer

Carl Michael Bellman Carl Michael Bellman (; 4 February 1740 – 11 February 1795) was a Swedish songwriter, composer, musician, poet and entertainer. He is a central figure in the Swedish song tradition and remains a powerful influence in Swedish music, as well ...

's songs, from his 1790 collection, ''

Fredman's Epistles ''Fredmans epistlar'' (English: ''Fredman's Epistles'') is a collection of 82 poems set to music by Carl Michael Bellman, a major figure in Swedish 18th century song. Though first published in 1790, it was created over a period of twenty years ...

'', where it is No. 63. The melody is based on a

minuet A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form that accompa ...

by . Bergström was a musician, and the song celebrates dancing and drinking late into the evening. The song, written in 1773, was revised heavily to make it suitable for publication. The initial version, naming Movitz not Bergström as the musician, was an attack on an over-zealous priest who had caused Bellman to be summonsed for an earlier poem that had joked about

salvation Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

. The song has been recorded by Bellman interpreters including

Fred Åkerström Fred Åkerström (27 January 1937 – 9 August 1985) was a Swedish folk guitarist and singer particularly noted for his interpretations of Carl Michael Bellman's music, and his own work of the typically Swedish song segment named ''visa''. These ...

, Fredrik Berg, and Rolf Leanderson.

Context

Song

Music and verse form

The song is marked "Diktad midt i veckan" (Dictated midweek); it was written in September 1773. The melody is in the key of

D major D major (or the key of D) is a major scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has two sharps. Its relative minor is B minor and its parallel minor is D minor. The D major scale is: : Ch ...

, marked ''

Menuetto A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form that accompa ...

'' (a courtly dance), and in _Triple_metre.html"_;"title="Triple_metre.html"_;"title="_Triple_metre">_Triple_metre">_time._There_are_two_long_verses,_each_of_24_lines._The_rhyming_pattern.html" ;"title="Triple_metre">_Triple_metre.html" ;"title="Triple_metre.html" ;"title=" Triple metre"> Triple metre"> time. There are two long verses, each of 24 lines. The rhyming pattern">Triple_metre">_Triple_metre.html" ;"title="Triple_metre.html" ;"title=" Triple metre"> Triple metre"> time. There are two long verses, each of 24 lines. The rhyming pattern is the shifting BBBC-DDDC-EEEC-ABAB-CDCD-EEED. The melody was derived from a

with the "timbre" label "Minuet af d. ä." in 's 1788 ''Bobis bröllop''.

Lyrics

The lyrics have been translated into English by Eva Toller. Bergström was a musician, playing a wind instrument for people's name days in the Katarina Church area of Stockholm, and the song celebrates dancing and drinking late into the evening. The last few lines run:

Reception and legacy

Bellman's biographer

Carina Burman Carina Burman (born 1960) is a Swedish novelist and literature scholar. Her research has been focused on Swedish 18th and 19th century literature. She completed her Ph.D. in literature in Uppsala in 1988 with a dissertation on the Gustavian write ...

records that the original 1773 version differed in many ways from the final 1790 text. It was originally Movitz who was playing, not Bergström; and the second verse was completely rewritten. She explains that an over-zealous priest, Nils Jacob Nymansson of Ulrika Eleonora Church on

Kungsholmen Kungsholmen is an island in Lake Mälaren in Sweden, part of central Stockholm, Sweden. It is situated north of Riddarfjärden and considered part of the historical province Uppland. Its area is with a perimeter of . The highest point is at S ...

, had been angered by one of Bellman's poems which likened the comfort offered by a beautiful girl, when Bellman was frightened by a thunderstorm, to

. That merely made the

Age of Enlightenment The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment; german: Aufklärung, "Enlightenment"; it, L'Illuminismo, "Enlightenment"; pl, Oświecenie, "Enlightenment"; pt, Iluminismo, "Enlightenment"; es, La Ilustración, "Enlightenment" was an intel ...

laugh, but for the church it was an insult. The King had announced the

freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic News media, media, especially publication, published materials, should be conside ...

, but the church considered itself an exception. Bellman was summonsed to appear before the

Chancellor of Justice The Chancellor of Justice is a government official found in some northern European countries, broadly responsible for supervising the lawfulness of government actions. History In 1713, the Swedish King Charles XII, preoccupied with fighting the ...

, but fortunately the King found the matter ridiculous. Bellman, a mild-mannered man, was sufficiently annoyed to write an attack upon Nymansson, in the form of the epistle. The first verse mentioned prostitution, a seller of lemons no longer carrying a heavy basket of fruit, but "Now among Barons / She dances herself warm". Burman suggests that this frank description among the otherwise playful lines was perhaps a hint of Bellman's anger. The second verse, she writes, paints a picture of chaos. It describes Nymansson as the biblical sea-monster or crocodile

Leviathan Leviathan (; he, לִוְיָתָן, ) is a sea serpent noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, the Book of Amos, and, according to some ...

, who with unrestrained lust visits

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

s and puts street-girls up "against planks and walls" in Stockholm's alleys to do as he likes with them. Meanwhile, the verse states that the priest condemns Fredman's (aka Bellman's) "tender love" for his girl

Iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants *Iris (color), an ambiguous color term Iris or IRIS may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional enti ...

. Movitz is exhorted to do as the

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

had done (with a papal bull in July 1773) and drive out the harmful priests. Burman comments that the epistle's sharp tone was nothing like Bellman's usual style; the words were strong for an age where people were readily punished for blasphemy. Finally, according to the 1773 version, the priest falls over, but "it doesn't matter". None of this appeared in the final printed version. Epistle 63 has been recorded by

on his 1974 album ''

Glimmande nymf Glimmande Nymf! blixtrande öga! (Gleaming Nymph, flashing eye!), is a song by the Swedish poet and performer Carl Michael Bellman from his 1790 collection, ''Fredman's Epistles'', where it is No. 72. It is subtitled "''Lemnad vid Cajsa Lisas S� ...

'', by Fredrik Berg on his 2014 album ''Angående Fredrik Bergs tolkning av C M Bellman'', where it is the first track, and by Rolf Leanderson on his 2012 album ''Carl Michael Bellman: Songs & Epistles in Swedish''. File:Fader Bergström by Elis Chiewitz 1826 (cropped).jpg, Fader Bergström by Elis Chiewitz, 1826 File:Dansande barn, målning av Lorens Pasch dy.jpg, Dancing a

in 18th century Sweden. Painting by , 1760

References

Sources

* * * * (contains the most popular Epistles and Songs, in Swedish, with sheet music) * (with facsimiles of sheet music from first editions in 1790, 1791) *

External links

Text of Epistle 63
{{Carl Michael Bellman 1790 compositions Swedish songs Fredmans epistlar