LANDSTAD, MAGNUS BROSTRUP

born Oct. 7, 1802, Msy, Nor. died Oct. 8, 1880, Kristiania [now Oslo] pastor and poet who published the first collection of authentic Norwegian traditional ballads (1853). After ordination, Landstad served in several parishes before going to Christiania (later Kristiania), where he remained the rest of his life. His Norske folkeviser (Norwegian Folk Ballad) dates back for its material to the European Middle Ages and revolves around the adventures of trolls, heroes, knights, and gods; a supplement contains folk melodies collected by L.M. Lindeman. Though a later, more authoritative collection was published, Landstad's book continued to be the most influential; Henrik Ibsen drew many of the themes for his early dramas from the Landstad collection. Landstad was later given responsibility for the preparation of a national hymnal. He included about 50 of his own hymns and completed the editing in 1861.