Oddvar Nygaard (July 23, 1919 – April 21, 1985) was a Norwegian accordionist and composer. Nygaard was born in Hundorp in the municipality of Sør-Fron. His first recording was made in 1942, and his teachers included the accordionist

Ottar E. Akre Ottar Edvardsen Akre (a.k.a. Ottar Agre, May 19, 1896 – October 29, 1992) was a Norwegian accordionist, composer, and educator, known for his many recordings and ensembles. Akre was the son of the tailor Edvard O. Olsen Akre (1844–1925) and ...

. Together with the fiddler Ola Opheim, he was one of the most important Norwegian folk musicians in the decades after the Second World War. With his ensemble, the Oddvar Nygaard Quartet (''Oddvar Nygaards kvartett''), he recorded 24 albums between 1964 and 1985. In addition to Nygaard himself on accordion, the quartet consisted of Ola Opheim on fiddle,

Finn Westbye The word Finn (''pl.'' Finns) usually refers to a member of the majority Balto-Finnic ethnic group of Finland, or to a person from Finland. Finn may also refer to: Places * Finn Lake, Minnesota, United States * Finn Township, Logan County, Nort ...

on guitar, and Håkon Nilsen on bass. The quartet won the 1973 '' Spellemannprisen'' contest in the category of folk music and old-fashioned dance, which was awarded for the first time that year. In 1976, Nygaard and Opheim won the Vågå Award (''Vågåfatet''). Nygaard made several hundred recordings and had many performances on both radio and TV. He collaborated with musicians such as Oscar Skau, Sven Nyhus,

Rolf Syversen Rolf Syversen (born 18 October 1948) is a Norwegian rower. He competed in the men's coxed four event at the 1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport ...

, and Børt Erik Thoresen, and with the skier Ole Ellefsæter. He composed about 170 of his own works. In 1995, the record company EMI released the catalog album ''Spelemannsliv'' (A Musician's Life) with selections from Nygaard's career.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nygaard, Oddvar 1919 births 1985 deaths Norwegian folk musicians Norwegian accordionists 20th-century Norwegian composers Spellemannprisen winners People from Sør-Fron 20th-century Norwegian folk musicians