Morten
Alfred
Høirup

"If I had wings I would fly home with you, to the bright nights, greet them, greet from me" – from Hils fra mig der hjemme, Danish emigrant song from 1922
So we have just returned home from the year's second tour in the USA, this time the tour featured 14 concerts in the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and Oregon.
Our trio, Lydom, Bugge & Høirup, is currently recording with the well-reviewed album "Gangspil", and several of our concerts were TV-streamed live, just as we were interviewed for various radio stations, and mentioned in several newspaper articles.
Our take on traditional folk music from Denmark was generally well received by an enthusiastic audience, many of whom had Scandinavian roots.
Particularly inspiring were the visits to the Nisswa-Stämman in Nisswa, Minnesota, and the Scandinavian Midsummer Festival, Astoria Oregon, respectively.
At both festivals there was a focus on music as a time machine, as well as a unifying force. Children, young people and adults gathered in the dance and music, and at the same time had plenty of opportunity to talk about where we come from as emigrants, who we are and what we have in common.
A particularly good topic of conversation was our version of the old emigrant song "Hils fra mig derhjemme", which I sing with the original text.
Many Americans with Scandinavian roots either have a close relationship with that song, or they can remember their parents and/or best parents singing it in hushed voices and serious facial expressions.
In our version, it appears to the surprise of many that the song is originally Danish, and had its premiere in Tivoli in 1922. The song about the Danish sailor who is afraid of losing contact with those at home, hits directly in the heart of every emigrant, whether he is from Denmark, Syria or Iraq.
The conversations after the concerts were many and good, and they were very much about the old country, about those who left, and about the concern for those who stayed behind.
Sonnich Lydom (Toradet harmonica/mouth harp), Kristian Bugge (Violin) and myself will return to the USA already at the end of September, where we will play at the huge emigrant festival, "Norsk Høstfest", in North Dakota.
Here, around 80,000 people spend a short week looking back to their Scandinavian roots in a quite overwhelming mix of music, dance, traditional cooking, porcelain painting, educational trips, knitting clubs and other good things.
Follow Lydom, Bugge & Høirup, listen to the music and watch the videos www.trad.dk and www.facebook.com/traddk