Þrymskviða - Old Norse Song

I used the reconstructed Old Norse pronunciation as described by Jackson Crawford—please note that this means it will sound unlike most readings of the poem which use modern Icelandic pronunciation. It’s a common convention to use the latter since it’s phonology changed the least from Old Norse, however it isn’t the same.

Whilst the Norse (more specifically the Vikings) are more popular than ever in pop culture, and Norse-themed music is everywhere, almost all of that music is creative in nature and doesn't seek to be historically accurate--the current audience is therefore inundated with tons of examples of very enjoyable music that is more modern and fantastical in nature than historically accurate. I wanted to add my humble contribution to the Norse-music landscape by providing a more historically informed example of what the actual music of the Norse may have sounded like, rather than music that evokes our modern pop culture idea of the Vikings like with the excellent Wardruna or Heilung bands.

I used a typical lyre of the region and era, drums, a jaw-harp and both wooden and bone flutes. All of these are attested historically for the Norse, although the degree to which their percussions were complex and heavily used in unkown. I also used a Byzantine lyra. The tagelharpa is often used as the go-to bowed lyre for Norse-themed music, however its earliest attestations are centuries after the Viking period, and bowed instruments are not conclusively known to have existed then in Scandinavia. I therefore used the Byzantine lyra given that extensive contact between the Norse and the Eastern Romans is known, and its possible that they first encountered bowed instruments from the Mediterranean cultures using them.

What is also unkown is their melodies: I decided to go with a probable option which is the Dorian minor mode. The Norse’s ancestors had lived in frequent contact with the Classical World of Antiquity where such heptatonic modes were common, and looking at Norse clothing and other cultural aspects, it’s clear that they weren’t as isolated from Europe as our romanticised ideas may want them to be, so I believe it likely that they utilised the typical heptatonic modes found in Europe in the early Middle-Ages. I built the melody so that the first syllable of every word would be accented as much as possible to respect Norse’s prosody.

Lyrics:
Vreiðr var þá Vingþórr er hann vaknaði
ok síns hamars of saknaði,
skegg nam at hrista, skor nam at dýja,
réð Jarðar burr um at þreifask.

Fló þá Loki, - fjaðrhamr dunði, -
unz fyr útan kom ása garða
ok fyr innan kom jotna heima.

Ek hef Hlórriða hamar of folginn
átta rostum fyr jorð neðan;
hann engi maðr aftr of heimtir,
nema færi mér Freyju at kvæn.

Þá kvað þat Heimdallr, hvítastr ása,
vissi hann vel fram sem vanir aðrir:
Bindum vér Þór þá brúðar líni,
hafi hann it mikla men Brísinga.

Þá kvað Loki Laufeyjar sonr:
Mun ek ok með þér ambótt vera,
vit skulum aka tvær í Jotunheima.

English translation:
Wroth then was Wingthor awakening,
To find missing Miolnir, his hammer.
He shook his beard and shaggy head:
The son of Earth sought how to find it.

Flew then Loki,
feathercoat rustling,
Until he was out
of the Ases' court
And was far within
the Iotons' home.

“I have reward worth my labor.
Thrym has thy hammer, Thurses' ruler;
And such no one shall see again,
Save he first bring him Freyja to wife."

Then said Heimdall, whitest of Ases,
Of the future aware as were the Vanir,
Let us bind then Thor, in bridal linen.
Let him bear the famed, Brisinga necklace

Said then Loki, son of Laufey:
“I’ll also go to act as maid,
We two girls journey to the giant's home.”

[faryafaraji]

I used the reconstructed Old Norse pronunciation as described by Jackson Crawford—please note that this means it will sound unlike most readings of the poem which use modern Icelandic pronunciation. It’s a common convention to use the latter since it’s phonology changed the least from Old Norse, however it isn’t the same.

Whilst the Norse (more specifically the Vikings) are more popular than ever in pop culture, and Norse-themed music is everywhere, almost all of that music is creative in nature and doesn't seek to be historically accurate--the current audience is therefore inundated with tons of examples of very enjoyable music that is more modern and fantastical in nature than historically accurate. I wanted to add my humble contribution to the Norse-music landscape by providing a more historically informed example of what the actual music of the Norse may have sounded like, rather than music that evokes our modern pop culture idea of the Vikings like with the excellent Wardruna or Heilung bands.


I used a typical lyre of the region and era, drums, a jaw-harp and both wooden and bone flutes. All of these are attested historically for the Norse, although the degree to which their percussions were complex and heavily used in unkown. I also used a Byzantine lyra. The tagelharpa is often used as the go-to bowed lyre for Norse-themed music, however its earliest attestations are centuries after the Viking period, and bowed instruments are not conclusively known to have existed then in Scandinavia. I therefore used the Byzantine lyra given that extensive contact between the Norse and the Eastern Romans is known, and its possible that they first encountered bowed instruments from the Mediterranean cultures using them.

What is also unkown is their melodies: I decided to go with a probable option which is the Dorian minor mode. The Norse’s ancestors had lived in frequent contact with the Classical World of Antiquity where such heptatonic modes were common, and looking at Norse clothing and other cultural aspects, it’s clear that they weren’t as isolated from Europe as our romanticised ideas may want them to be, so I believe it likely that they utilised the typical heptatonic modes found in Europe in the early Middle-Ages. I built the melody so that the first syllable of every word would be accented as much as possible to respect Norse’s prosody.

Lyrics:
Vreiðr var þá Vingþórr er hann vaknaði
ok síns hamars of saknaði,
skegg nam at hrista, skör nam at dýja,
réð Jarðar burr um at þreifask.

Fló þá Loki, - fjaðrhamr dunði, -
unz fyr útan kom ása garða
ok fyr innan kom jötna heima.

Ek hef Hlórriða hamar of folginn
átta röstum fyr jörð neðan;
hann engi maðr aftr of heimtir,
nema færi mér Freyju at kvæn.

Þá kvað þat Heimdallr, hvítastr ása,
vissi hann vel fram sem vanir aðrir:
Bindum vér Þór þá brúðar líni,
hafi hann it mikla men Brísinga.

Þá kvað Loki Laufeyjar sonr:
Mun ek ok með þér ambótt vera,
vit skulum aka tvær í Jötunheima.

English translation:
Wroth then was Wingthor awakening,
To find missing Miolnir, his hammer.
He shook his beard and shaggy head:
The son of Earth sought how to find it.

Flew then Loki,
feathercoat rustling,
Until he was out
of the Ases' court
And was far within
the Iotons' home.

“I have reward worth my labor.
Thrym has thy hammer, Thurses' ruler;
And such no one shall see again,
Save he first bring him Freyja to wife."

Then said Heimdall, whitest of Ases,
Of the future aware as were the Vanir,
Let us bind then Thor, in bridal linen.
Let him bear the famed, Brisinga necklace

Said then Loki, son of Laufey:
“I’ll also go to act as maid,
We two girls journey to the giant's home.”

[zpgeypo]

I literally searched for authentic norse music and the first song that came up had booming drums and throat singing, featuring comments from all over the world describing their innate gravitation to such music due to their 5% viking blood. Many of our cultures seem so watered down and lost we are desperate for this connection to a fictional past.

[sethanderson]

Persian Canadian out here doing more justice to our ancestors sounds than bands who are actually from Northwest Europe. That was pleasing dude.

[justinianthegreat]

This is what I'd like expect vikings to sing while they're sailing to Constantinople

[ruohaoli]

“0/8 not enough throat singing”
Jokes aside great production man - this could’ve been what Ibn Fadlan listened to during his journey!

[romulus_rex]

You show me a new face of old Norse songs, I love the deep, baritonal War music with heavy drums and dark theme. But this is a masterpiece, makes me feel like I'm drinking ale with my battle brothers after a long day of fighting and raiding, laughing at the thought of Thor dressed as a spouse. Great job as always

[Sophia_Aurorae]

To answer unscrupulous souls from before: Honestly this man is clearly not native Norse and that is fucking beautiful. He is so passionate about this, when even their own native people couldn’t be bothered at this point to post any similar video (and even if they did. So what). This is the best thing like this on YouTube this country has seen in a long time! I don’t mean to call out the elephant in the room, (And I might be wrong) but I know a mixed person when I see them; and it appears he is quite potentially middle-eastern in origin or something of that nature. If he finds resonance there in Norse myth and life -You know what? it does not make him any less of a citizen of this country or passionate soul of this music. We are all here on the floating rock in the middle space. Who the hell is it to dictate where we belong and what our home is? This is amazing music. I’m so happy he is making this music. That he has found his home here, or at least one facet of it. I myself consider myself a stranger in a strange land. I myself have had dreams and visions of Norse myth when even I myself was not part of it, either. And in fact - I feel that I do not belong in this world anywhere; but all cultures can indeed inspire. I will forever be lost, but never alone.

[Tsotha]

I am from Denmark and can easily imagine this being played in my country 1000 years ago for sure!

[loslingos]

Never heard of this version of Norse music. I think this might be the most accurate song I have heard of Norse music. Thank you.

[dannymarashi]

Return of the vocal chameleon to show us the more gentle and down to earth side of a people renowned for their raiding. You do the memory of all skálds justice with your music. <3

[hyoga]

One thing I haven't seen people mention about the lyrics to the song is the word "tvær". Farya does include it in his translation but I want to explain it to those that didn't see or notice (or are just curious).

The very final line "Vit skulum aka tvær í Jotunheima." or translated "We two shall go to Jötunheim."
The word "tvær" is the interesting one here as it just means "two" but refers specifically to two female subjects. It's correctly translated as "two girls", referring to Loki's shapeshifting to a girl and Thor's bridal disguise.

It's pretty hard to explain the comedic effect it has in Icelandic but I hope I managed to get it across.

[beaupeters]

Please release this on your spotify 🙏 I would definitely download it and listen to it on the regular

[mattaffenit]

Very much liking the more upbeat tone. The more dour sounding music has its place, but historical cultures aren't one-note peoples only capable of producing specific kinds of music.

Definitely going to be using this for a mead hall in a tabletop campaign!

[robertberger]

Fascinating . I wonder if. Scandinavian folk songs that have survived and still sung might give you some clues about ancient Norse music . You can easily hear these on youtube .

[a_elwadiya]

I love how you've grown to adopt the costumes of the nation. Such as: the Spanish one, the French one, the English one, and this one!

[Badnercalabrese]

Man...this keeps happening with your music. I listen to the song at first and enjoy it but don't really connect until a few days later I catch myself humming along to one of your melodies.

Keep up the amazing work !

[RT-wmwb]

Very nice, would like to see more Nordic stuff 🇫🇮❤️

[masterbates]

This is amazing! i'm happy to see Old Norse music as historically as possible!

[magnekalinsen]

So awesome! Sounds very authentic ✨
I love seeing this kind of approach to Nordic music gradually growing.

[FoakHome]

Wooo! Excellent to see some Nordic stuff! (: 🇧🇻