Second Annual Membership Meeting
Plans are underway
for the Second Annual Membership Meeting on Saturday, September 30, 2006, at
3:00 pm (Free Admission). The overwhelmingly positive response
following our first membership meeting last September resulted in the decision
to make this an annual event.
The purpose of the
meeting is to bring together all members of the Scandinavian Cultural Center
(SCC) in order to provide them with up-to-date information regarding the SCC,
the Scandinavian Studies Program (SSP), and the Scandinavian Immigrant
Experience Collection (SIEC).
Representatives from the three areas will present a brief overview of
the exciting work they are doing, and how they are working together to preserve
the rich Nordic heritage at Pacific
Lutheran University
and the surrounding communities.
Last year, the Scandinavian Cultural Center
experienced a growth of fifty new members!
We hope that each of them will be able to join our long-time members for
an informative and fun meeting. It is a
perfect time for fellowship and getting to know one another better. In addition to enjoying delicious refreshments,
you will hear some outstanding musical entertainment. Bill Boyd, Gina Boyd, and Leslie Foley are
three members of the group, “Hale Bill and the Bopps,” a band that plays
primarily Swedish and Norwegian traditional dance music--with a few cultural
twists and moments of musical humor. All
three musicians have been playing fiddle for many years in the Seattle area, in a variety of combinations
with each other and other musicians.
Recently “the Bopps” recorded music for the documentary "Finding Thea,"
which will debut in September. At the
membership meeting they will treat you to some of their favorite tunes!
By now you will have
received your invitation in the mail. If
you haven’t had a chance to RSVP, please do so now by calling 253-535-7322
(leave a message) or by emailing SCC Director Susan Young at <youngse@plu.edu>. We’ll look forward to seeing you there!
Popular
Nordic Cooking Classes Return in October!
The Scandinavian
Cultural Center Council is pleased to partner with local Nordic organizations
in order to provide our members with another outstanding series of Nordic
cooking classes in October. The
Norwegian classes are taught by members of Embla Lodge #2 - Daughters of
Norway, the Swedish classes by Norden Lodge #233 - Vasa Order of America, and
the Danish classes by Thyra Lodge #19 - Danish Sisterhood.
Each class will
begin at 10:00 am in the Scandinavian Cultural Center
kitchen where our “chefs” will enjoy using our new appliances (made possible by
a very generous SCC member). The
instructors will demonstrate how to prepare several delicious Scandinavian
recipes. After the demonstrations,
cooking class participants will have an opportunity to sample each of the
recipes! It’s lots of fun, and each
class is only $5.00! There is no need to
pre-register, but be sure to arrive on time so you’ll get a good seat.
A schedule listing
the menu for each class will be sent to previous cooking class attendees, as
soon as the menus have been set. If you
are not on our cooking class mailing list, you can call or e-mail the SCC
Classes Chair, Kathrina Jaech, for information: 253-584-2690 or <LydiaJay@hotmail.com>.
Schedule of Classes
Saturday,
October 14
Norwegian
Tuesday, October 17
Swedish
Thursday,
October 19
Norwegian
Tuesday,
October 24
Danish
Wednesday,
October 25
Swedish
Tuesday,
October 31
Norwegian
News and Notes
Welcome New Members! David Lamberson and Joyce
Taute (Fife, Washington).
Membership Directory: We are currently in the
process of designing a new membership directory to be distributed to all
members of the Scandinavian
Cultural Center. The directory will include members’ names,
addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses (if applicable). If you would prefer that certain information
not appear in the directory, please let us know (by October 1) in writing
(addressed to SCC, Pacific Lutheran University,
Tacoma, WA 98447),
by phone (253-535-7322-leave a message), or email <youngse@plu.edu>.
Swedish Exhibits on Display: If you haven’t
yet had a chance to visit the Center to see our current exhibits, you will want
to plan to do so. “A Touch of Sweden,”
features two outstanding exhibits: “Children of the Heavenly Father,”
photographs by Kristine Leander, and “Landscapes from a Swedish Heritage,”
paintings by Niklas Aronsson. They will
be on display through November 12, 2006.
The paintings by Niklas Aronsson are available for sale. Prices range between $400 and $1,600. Contact SCC Director Susan Young for more
information. Phone: 253-535-7349 or
Email: <youngse@plu.edu>.
Annual Scandinavian Heritage Festival: October
will be here before you know it, so be sure to mark your calendars for October
6-8! The festival will take place in the
Pavilion at the Western Washington Fairgrounds on the corner of 9th and Meridian in Puyallup.
For more information, email <desireeomdal@hotmail.com> or visit
the website at <www.oktoberfestnw.com> or call 425-881-1544.
Nordic
Study Circle Lecture: Professor Claudia Berguson, Chair of the
Scandinavian Studies Program at PLU, will present a lecture entitled, “Making
Medieval and Modern History: Sigrid Undset’s Life and Authorship,” on September
8, 7:00 pm. Professor Berguson is a Fulbright Scholar
(2003-04) and teaches courses in Norwegian language, and Scandinavian
literature and culture. She will explore
how Sigrid Undset made history by, among other things, being the first (and up
to now only!) Norwegian woman to receive the Nobel Prize for literature. She
was also an outspoken critic of the rapid changes in Norwegian culture in the
early 1900s and argued for valuing the past as a way to understand the present
and future. This lecture will concentrate mainly on Undset’s trilogy,
"Kristin Lavransdatter," and the ways the author recreated Norway’s
medieval history. The presentation take
place at the Pierce County Library, Peninsula Branch, located at 4424 Point Fosdick Drive,
Gig Harbor. Check their website for the
complete schedule: <nordicstudycircle.org>. For more information, call 253-851-7222 or email <gop@harbornet.com>.
Oleana Fashion Show: The Annual Oleana Fashion Show will take
place on Sunday, October 15, 1:00 pm, at
Canterwood Country Club. The newest Oleana collections are telling the story of
how silk came to Norway, so
they are traveling the “Silk Road” backwards
to reveal their delightful design inspirations.
The first stop is Granada, Spain;
the second stop is Istanbul.
This year’s event will feature guest speaker Audun Toven. Admission: $15 (RSVP by October 8). If you
are not currently on the fashion show mailing list, call (253-851-8678) or
email <chalet.laura@worldnet.att.net>. You will receive an
invitation along with directions to Canterwood. The event is sponsored by
Chalet in the Woods (website: <info@chaletinthewoods.com>). A
portion of the event’s proceeds goes to benefit the Scandinavian Cultural
Center, so we hope you
will come out to support the cause!
PLU Involvement Fair: This year, the SCC had a booth at the annual
involvement fair for PLU students. It
was exciting to see and hear the students’ enthusiasm about our upcoming
classes and events. Two students
volunteered to teach an arts and crafts class, and two others signed on as new
members of the Center! Many thanks to Ed
and Betty Larson, and our director Susan Young, for staffing the booth!
Smuler fra
Presidenten . . .
Welcome to a new and exciting year at the Scandinavian Cultural
Center! I look forward to working with our
outstanding Board and Council—and with all of you—to make this another
excellent year at the SCC.
We had an extraordinary year last year. We celebrated Norway’s
achievement of independence in 1905 with events such as Dr. Halvorson’s lecture
on “Edvard Grieg and Norway’s
Struggle for Independence” in November, and the
visit and presentation by Norway’s
Princess Märtha Louise in April. We had
a series of top flight musical performances by Vajas, the Felicio
Trio, and the Reykjavik Wind Quintet. This in addition to outstanding exhibits such
as the folk art collection of Florence Buck, “Nordic Imagery: Watercolors and
Pastels” by Sharon Aamodt, and “A Touch of Sweden” by Niklas Aronsson and
Kristine Leander.
Even though matching last year’s outstanding schedule of
events will be difficult, it is a challenge we look forward to. We are, indeed, looking forward to another
excellent year. It begins this month with
our Second Annual Membership Meeting on September 30th. This will be an opportunity to learn about
the programs planned for the coming year as well as to hear details on our
current fiscal status, including the progress of our endowment fund. We will be updated on the Scandinavian Immigrant
Experience Collection and on what is happening in the Scandinavian Studies
Program. There also will be a recognition of the many who serve the SCC in
inconspicuous but nevertheless all-important ways. And, of course, there will be delicious
refreshments, as well as first-class entertainment! I look forward to seeing and meeting with all
of you at this our first event of the “season.”
(See p.6 for a complete calendar of events.)
If you would like to contact me—about questions or concerns
or just to say ‘hi”—you can reach me at <myrboga@plu.edu> (or <myrboga@msn.com>)
or by phone at 360-420-4237
Vennligst, Gunnulf
The Scandinavian Immigrant Experience Collection,
located in
PLU’s Mortvedt Library, contains materials relating to Scandinavian immigrants
who settled in the United States
(particularly in the Pacific Northwest) and Canada. By studying these historical records,
personal memoirs, and the books read and preserved by the immigrants, students
and researchers gain a deeper insight into the diverse experiences of the
Scandinavian immigrants. The collection includes literature, historical records
of people, families, and organizations associated with immigration, oral
histories, and myriad books, newspapers, periodicals, and photographs. For more
info:.<www.plu.edu/~archives> or 253-535-7586.
~Kerstin
Ringdahl, Curator
SCC
Corportate Sponsors
Presenting Sponsor
($5000+ level)
Wells Fargo Management, Dale
Benson
Viking Bank, Bev
Cornett, Asst. Vice President
Major Sponsor
($2001-$4999 level)
IKEA-Seattle
Thrivent Financial
for Lutherans,
Knut Olson,
General Partner
Sponsor
($1000-$2000 level)
Harold A. Allen
Realtors,
Michael Larson,
President/Designated Broker
Gifted Musicians to
Present Live Concert
October 30, 2006, 7:00 pm
Scandinavian Cultural Center
Admission: $6 General, $5 SCC Members, Students Free
Reservations not required
Andrea Hoag, Loretta Kelley, and
Charlie Pilzer perform traditional Scandinavian folk music on violin, Hardanger
fiddle (hardingfele), bass, button accordion, pump organ, and voice.
They specialize in the music of Sweden
and Norway but also play
tunes from Finland and Denmark. Their
playing is interspersed with stories, lore, humor and audience-participation
songs that both enlighten and entertain.
So, what happens when you put
together one of the finest American-born Swedish fiddlers with one of the
finest American-born Norwegian fiddlers and add a guy who has traveled the
northern countries of the world playing, well, yes, Scandinavian music with a
multi-national band?
You get music that is anything
but ordinary. Strings. Vibrating strings. Lots of them. One fiddle, one hardingfele,
and one contrabass. Rich deep fundamental notes and ethereal haunting
overtones. The scales twist your ears and the rhythm has a life of its own.
From the tale of its origin to the names of the players who passed it along,
each tune speaks of a land and a tradition.
None of this explains the raw
life that fills the room when Andrea, Loretta, and Charlie play. Perhaps it is
the decades of experience and passion that each musician embraces. Or could it be that they play music that
fills their souls to overflowing?
In the end, we are the lucky
ones, because we can listen and watch as they tune up, release their bows, and
transport us to the “Lands of the Midnight Sun and Luminous Winters."
For more information about
Andrea, Loretta, and Charlie, and their new CD, "Hambo in the Snow,"
visit <www.azaleacityrecordings.com/HITS> or email <moreinfo@azaleacityrecordings.com>.
The
Hardanger fiddle, or hardingfele in Norwegian, is a folk violin native
to Norway
with a continuous living tradition
reaching back to the mid-1600's. It features four or five sympathetic strings,
which resonate with the four playing strings to give the instrument its
distinctive rich, resonant sound. Hardanger fiddles are also intricately
decorated with floral pen and ink drawings on the top, back and sides called rosing,
and usually have mother-of-pearl and bone inlay on the fingerboard and
tailpiece and sometimes on the edges of the top and back as well.
Calendar of Events – September-October 2006
Exhibits
«Children of the Heavenly Father, photographs
by Kristine Leander, May 4-November
12
«Landscapes from a Swedish Heritage, paintings
by Niklas Aronsson, May 4-November
12
«Public Hours: Sundays, 1:00-4:00 pm, Tuesdays/Wednesdays, 11:00 am-3:00 pm
(Note: There
will be no public hours on the following dates:
September 3, September 5, and September 19)
Meetings
Danish
Sisterhood
October 4 (No meeting in
September)
9:30 am, 253-843-2249
Hardanger
Embroidery Group
September 13 (No meeting in
October)
9:30 am, 253-759-7292
Free admission— Newcomers
welcome!
Danish
Sangaften
September 17 and October 15
6:00 pm, 253-984-6700
Free admission— Newcomers
welcome!
Norwegian
Rosemalers Group
September 20, 27 and October 18,
25
9am-3
pm, 253-841-3392
Free admission— Newcomers
welcome!
SCC
Executive Board
September 18 and October 16
4:45 pm, UC 214
SCC
Council
September 18 and October 16
5:30 pm, SCC
SCC
2nd Annual Membership Meeting
September 30, 3:00 pm
RSVP
253-535-7522 (leave message)
Free admission (See p. 1 for
more details)
Docent
Committee Meeting and Brunch
October 17, 12:30 pm, 253-847-8323
Classes
Nordic
Cooking Classes
October 14, 17, 19, 24, 25, 31
10:00 am, Admission: $5 per
class
(See p. 2 for more details)
Major Events
Scandinavian
Heritage Festival
October 6, 7, 8, 11:00 am—7:00 pm
Admission: $6 (children 5 and
under free)
(See p. 3 for more details)
Andrea
Hoag, Loretta Kelley, and Charlie Pilzer Concert
October 30, 7:00 pm, 253-582-9360
(See p. 5 for more details)
Upcoming Events and
Exhibits
Norwegian
Immigration: History and Interpretation
Lecture by Tova Brandt, Vesterheim Museum
November 18, Mid Morning, SCC
Christmas
in Scandinavia Exhibit
November 19—January 7
Annual
Sankta Lucia Fest
December 1, 7:30 pm, Lagerquist Hall
Annual
Norwegian Christmas Service
December 6, 7:00 pm, SCC
Annual
Nordic Christmas Fest
December 16, 6:30 pm, SCC
News from the Scandinavian
Studies Program
“One must go to many places
Travel widely in the world
Before one is wise enough to see
the workings
Of other people’s minds.”
“Sayings
of the High One” in The Poetic Edda
The perspective of this saying,
or others like it found in The Poetic Edda, was perhaps not the first
thought on the minds of Vikings as they invaded Paris or Lindisfarne, nor did
victims of such Viking “visits” find their “guests” so much interested in the
workings of their minds as the riches of their churches and homes! But the “Sayings of the High One” at least
can be said to offer a glimpse of Scandinavian forefathers’ more philosophical
view of encounters with their global neighbors.
Needless to say, it is this view that offers more hope for learning!
In the Scandinavian Studies
Program, we challenge students to travel beyond the boundaries of home in order
to understand more fully the cultures and peoples of the Nordic region. We expect that our graduates become wiser,
more cross-culturally skilled, intellectually flexible, and well prepared for
life and work in the global community beyond PLU. Fall semester 2006 begins with Scandinavian
Studies students “traveling widely” both here on campus and in Norway.
Our on-campus fall semester
courses offer students several directions for the intellectual exploration of
Scandinavian cultures and societies. Immigration
to Scandinavia is the focus of both a course
for first-year students and the advanced language course in Norwegian. Scandinavia
and world affairs is the theme of a course taught in English for Scandinavian
Studies, Global Studies, and Political Science students. Norwegian language courses (beginning and
intermediate level) are taught within the context of modern Norwegian culture.
Our students can literally travel
to many places to learn of the Nordic cultures first hand. Our off campus semester at Hedmark University
College in Norway is a carefully integrated study of Norwegian culture and
society, with special focus on Norway’s approach to contemporary global issues
such as conflict mediation and peace building, relationships with developing
nations, and the role of social institutions in local, regional and national
communities. The students participating
in the program this fall arrived peacefully in Oslo
in mid-August, and with open minds began the four-month study of Norwegian
culture and society at Hamar,
Norway. Having moved beyond the first challenges of
learning the transportation system, how to skillfully and gracefully create a
Norwegian matpakke (bag lunch), and negotiating the Norwegian language,
the students now join three Namibian students and a number of Norwegian
students for the challenge of “seeing the workings of other people’s
minds”. Best wishes for a successful
semester to all our students traveling at home or abroad!
Submitted by Claudia Berguson,
Scandinavian Studies Program Chair
The Scandinavian Scene (Susan Young, Editor) is
a bimonthly newsletter published for members and friends of the Scandinavian Cultural Center. For membership information, call 253-535-7349
or write to: Scandinavian
Cultural Center,
Pacific Lutheran
University, Tacoma, WA 98447.
Scandinavian
Cultural Center
<www.plu.edu/~scancntr>
Executive
Board and Council Members
Susan Young
(Director), Gunnulf Myrbo (President), Lisa Ottoson (Vice President),
Karen Giguere (Secretary), Norita Stewart (Treasurer),
Maynard Hedegaard (Activities Group Coordinator), Joanne McDonald
(Outreach Group Coordinator),
Janet Ruud (Services Group Coordinator/Immediate Past President),
Claudia Berguson and Troy
Storfjell (Scandinavian Studies Program),
Kerstin Ringdahl (Scandinavian Immigrant Experience Collection),
Ed and Betty Larson (Program Committee Chairs), Esther
Hinschberger (Docent Committee Chair),
Kathrina Jaech (Classes Committee Chair), Judy Laursen (Kitchen
Committee Chair),
Audun Toven (Active Member), Julie Watness (Active member),
Douglas Oakman (Dean of Humanities/Advisory Member)
Associate
Members
Linda
Caspersen-Andresen, Laila Hansen, Tom Heavey, Carol Kemp, Marge Kunschak,
Ulla Lindwood, Inge
Miller, Gail Sawyer, Nicki
Tollefson, Nancy White, Don Wilson
