För gull och för edela kransar
en identifiering av 22 nyfunna ballader
Medieval balladComparative methodGeorge StephensGunnar Olof Hyltén-CavalliusVSSVäxjö Stadsbiblioteks StephenssamlingSMBSveriges Medeltida Ballader
In February 2005, a collection predominantly containing medieval ballads was found in the library of Växjö. The collectors were mainly George Stephens, originally from Scotland, and Gunnar Olof Hyltén-Cavallius, both active in Småland in the nineteenth century. In connection with an intital inventory of the material, Magnus Gustafsson, ethnomusicologist at Smålands Musikarkiv, marked ballads of uncertain origin with a question mark.The purpose of this essay is to investigate 22 of these marked ballads. To be able to compare them with other material we have developed a method to identify differences. By means of the method both the text and the melody are compared and in addition the differences in terms of quality and quantity are assessed. We have compared the collection, named Växjö Stadsbiblioteks Stephenssamling (VSS), with the Swedish edition of medieval ballads, Sveriges Medeltida Ballader (SMB). In the comparison, a ballad forgotten since the mid nineteenth century was retrieved .