Vidar Sandbeck (July 21, 1918 – November 10, 2005) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

folk singer, composer, and writer. Sandbeck was born in

Åmot Åmot is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rena. Other villages in the municipality include Åsta, Osneset, an ...

, in modest conditions, and suffered from poor health during much of his childhood. He became a prodigy on the

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

at an early age and had his public debut in

Stjørdal Stjørdal () or is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Stjørdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stjørdal, also called Stjørdalshalsen. Some of the villages in the municipalit ...

in 1941. He gave up a professional career as a violinist early on to make ends meet and provided himself with odd jobs in his home town. He wrote poetry on the side and published his first collection in 1954. His creative efforts soon extended to include composition and performance of

ballads A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

, classical works, and books. He was also an accomplished wood carver. He told stories to children on radio. He won a number of awards and commendations. Sandbeck published 40 books of various kinds. He died in his home town of Åmot, aged 87.

Bibliography

* Anitras dans (Anitra's Dance) - 1983 * Far (Father) - 1984 * Fy skam deg! (Shame on You!) - 1977 * En handelsreisendes liv (The Life of a Travelling Merchant) - 1980 * Husbondens røst (The Voice of the Husband) - 1982 * Kanarifuglen - 1988. * Kjærlighet og gråbensild - Cappelen - 1967 * Kjærtegn på vidvanke - 1970 * Langs bygdevegen - Dagfinn Grønoset og Vidar Sandbeck - 1960 * Månen lo over Ravneberget - 1964 * Rundtramper og flatfele - 1962 * Stakkars kroken - 1978 * Trøste oss! (Poor us!) - 1979

References

External links

Home page of the Norwegian Sandbeck Society
1918 births 2005 deaths People from Åmot Norwegian male writers Norwegian folk singers 20th-century Norwegian male singers 20th-century Norwegian singers {{Norway-composer-stub