Thoralf Borg

Romjulsdrøm

The poem Romjulsdrøm (“Christmas Dream”) was first published in Arbeiderbladet on January 3rd 1959, and became known when Thoralf Borg set a melody to it in 1968. Up until this, Alf Prøysen had used a melody quite similar to the song Lijan uti dalen, when he sang the song in the TV program Ei vise vil jeg synge in 1964. At the same time that Borg's melody was written, the last four lines of text were also added to the poem, and the song took on the form we know today.

The form and structure of this arrangement originates from a version for big band and vocals commissioned by Østre Toten Storband, written in 2018 for one of their traditional midnight concerts on the day before Christmas. In an attempt to give the arrangement a nice calm and the text a lot of room, as is often the case in songs like this, it ended up in a relatively narrative style where the variation in tempo and the shifts between swing and straight eighth notes are particularly central.

The song is about family, friendship and the quiet days of the Christmas holidays, which hopefully is something most people can recognise. The arrangement for the aforementioned midnight concert was ordered because my sister was to be the soloist for the concert, and since my father also played lead trombone - as he has done in this big band for as long as I can remember - it was natural to add a small trombone solo as well. It's always special to write and arrange music for people I know and appreciate, but it's extra special when it's also for two of my great role models.

- David Sætre Hveem -