1. Fair Isle Reinlendari (Ívar Bærentsen) Ívar composed this tune inspired by a wonderful trip to Fair Isle, between Shetland and Orkney.

2. Sveds-Jans Polkett (trad. Sweden) a polkett from Svärdsjø, Dalarna.

3. Hamish Bayne/La Fille Qvinze ans/Smith Jig (Ívar Bærentsen/trad. Faroe Islands, nr. 36 eftir Svabo/Ívar Bærentsen) A Svabo sandwich on Bærentsen bread! The second jig is from the notebook of Jens Christian Svabo (see no. 11).

4. Det er i nat (trad. Faroe Islands/Kristian Blak) Kristian has arranged this haunting Faroese ballad melody. The ballad is usually sung a cappella for Faroese dancing.

5. Hans Thomsen/Søren Fogeds styk'/Det først'; brujstyk'; (trad. Denmark) three tunes from the Danish island of Fanø.

6. Marianna's Hambo (Ívar Bærentsen) Ívar composed this dance tune for our friend Marianna Holzer.

7. Eilean (Kristian Blak) This piece is based on melodic forms found in songs from the island of Lewis in the Hebrides.

8. Rumlekvadrille (trad. Denmark) a well-known tune from the island of TĀsinge.

9. Lapp-Nils vals från Väst-Jämtland (trad. Sweden) Janne taught us this waltz from his home region in western Jämtland.

10. Reinlender fra Sogn (Moses Paulen) a Norwegian reinlender composed by Moses Paulen from Jølster. Janne plays this tune which he learned from a fine Norwegian-American hardingfiddler, the late Anund Roheim.

11. Mars (trad. Faroe Islands, nr. 51 eftir Svabo) another tune from the notebook of Jens Christian Svabo. Svabo (1746-1824) is a prominent figure in Faroese history, known primarily as a linguist and ethnographer. While living in Denmark, during several periods between 1765 and 1800, he learned to play the violin and is reported to have played for dances. In 1775, the same year that he apparently began writing his music notebook, he traveled briefly in England. Svabo returned to live in the Faroes in 1800 and took up lodgings in a house called Pætursarstovu in Tórshavn, the capital of the Faroe Islands. In 1928, a manuscript was discovered in the attic of Pætursarstova: Svabo's own handwritten collection of tunes, dated 1775. This manuscript is now kept in the Faroese National Library.

12. German Gladensvend (Kristian Blak) Kristian has composed a new melody for an old Danish ballad.

13. Reinlender (trad. Norway)

14. Den ormstukne (trad. Denmark) a reinlænderpolka played throughout Denmark. The title translates as "The Worm-eaten", but we're not entirely sure what the worms ate. We learned this version from fiddler Svend Bjerg (1903-1999) from Fjand in west Jutland. Svend remained an active musician well into his 80Ís. While we play this tune in G, Svend usually played it in the key of F. "å a hår så ont i æ maw; det hær a håj i fjowten daw!" eng: Oh, I have such a stomachache; I've had it for fourteen days!

15. Álvastakkur (Kristian Blak) The breathtaking landscape of the Faroe Islands has served as inspiration for many of Kristian's compositions. Álvastakkur is a stack located just off the island of Hestur.

16. Lapp-Nils polska från Väst-Jämtland (trad. Sweden) another tune from Janne's neck of the woods, near the Norwegian border.

17. Den røde lue (trad. Denmark) a lively folk dance from Himmerland, in hopsa rhythm, "The Red Cap". You can hear Kristian singing, "Wem hå' tån mi rø lu?" eng: Who has taken my red cap? A red cap is often part of the Danish men's folk costume.

Produced by Charlie Pilzer
Recorded March, 2003 by Jónas Bloch Danielsen at Útvarp Føroya, Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
Mixed by Jim Robeson at Bias Studios, Springfield, VA, USA
Mastered by David Glasser at Airshow Mastering, Boulder, CO, USA
Cover photos by Philippe Carré
Layout by Niels Arge Galán and Uni Árting