I'm Svend-Erik Engh -
I have been a professional storyteller for more than 30 years.
I have been a teacher and coach since 1994.
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Photo, Alice Fernbank
A varied selection of stories, told with heart and presence. Written in such an accessible way that you feel that you easily can retell them yourself if you should like.
Anna Lundquist
This is a wee gem of a book - a fascinating mix of tales from a master storyteller, guiding us through the folklore, history and mythology of his country. There's a lovely mix of the humorous and the serious, love and loss, war and peace - something for everyone in this book! You can lose yourself in it for hours, or just flick through on the bus.
Thoroughly recommend!
Neil Sutcliffe
Lovely book with enchanting stories. Of interest to all age groups. I thoroughly enjoyed them myself and have read them to my grandchildren who were captivated by them.
Ann Hansen
A collection of tales that grew out of the sprawling flatlands, the oozing fjords, the dark forests and the waves that crash on the shores of Denmark.
How a Viking ship carried a future king into Roskilde Fjord, how a mermaid’s laughter brought fortunes to her fisherman host, how the people of Lolland survived a flood with waves 3m high and how a princess found her freedom in becoming a prince.
Illustration Tea Bendix
‘Gullrun’s Saga – She Built a Boat’ is an original story created by Danish storyteller Svend-Erik Engh in collaboration with musician Neil Sutcliffe from Scotland.
Neil is going to sing a Scottsih ballad he had composed and created the lyrics to. It will start and end the show.
We are creating a new saga, a saga about a young woman from the landscapes around Steinkjer in Norway.
We call our saga ‘Gullrun’s Saga – She Built a Boat’ and we will bring this original tale to life through storytelling, singing and music, blending traditional and original pieces.
The story
In 980 AD, a young woman named Gullrun with golden hair decided to leave the newly formed Norway and sail to Iceland. Her father wanted her to marry Svein Bergman, a mountain boy, but Gullrun, a sea girl at heart, found no connection with him. Their engagement party only highlighted their differences.
Determined to forge her own path, Gullrun, set her sights on Iceland, the land of the sagas. There was only one obstacle: she needed a boat! With her crippled mother’s unwavering support, they enlisted the help of skilled boat builders from the village. Together, they spent the entire winter building a boat and weaving a sail.
We will perform a Work in Progress at Scottish Storytelling Festival 2024, 31st October 2pm The Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh, Scotland.
Hilmarfestivalen, Steinkjer, Norway 8th November
Together with Scottish Musician Neil Sutcliffe we tell a story inspired by the Viking’s arrival in Scotland, with traditional Nordic tales and Gaelic and Scots songs woven into the narrative.
You are invited onboard a Viking Longship sailing from Jutland in Denmark to Shetland in Scotland. A young man sets off to finish his fathers work: to build a causeway out to Law Ting Holm and share his culture with the Shetlanders.
I knew it was going to be good, but I didn’t know it was going to be this good
– Lorna Shields
Walk the Oars is a treasure, an ancient oasis of delight in the sea of the modern world. The whole thing is engaging and exciting, and rekindles a semi-lost fire of storytelling
Imogen Rowe, edinburghguide.com
Once Upon a Time There Was a War
Commissioned by Scottish International Storytelling Festival 2023
Right To Be Human
The harsh reality of war meets the magic of love songs and art, as Danish storyteller Svend-Erik Engh shares stories from real-life soldiers gathered in a decade of research, whilst musician Mairi Campbell sings songs of peace and love, from the canon of Scottish traditional song and her own writings. Danish artist Tea Bendix illustrates words and music, bringing another dimension to the stories.
One of the last events of this year’s Scottish International Storytelling Festival, Once Upon a Time There was a War, brought a touch of magical realism to the topic of conflict. Indeed trying to approach ‘war’ directly is usually a losing proposition, the all-encompasing awfulness of the subject defying definition. So in taking a slightly oblique approach, combining the potent talents of Danish storytellerSvend-Erik Engh, award-winning trad musician Mairi Campbell, and Danish live-illustrator Tea Bendix, the show chooses wisely.
A well judged, well balanced show, Once Upon a Time There Was a War, made a lively, poignant and nuanced meditation.
Venligt Vibrerende Vekselvirkning (V.V.V) handler udelukkende om historiefortælling og var et begreb, som jeg stillede op engang i 1990'erne, da jeg underviste på Borup's Højskole. Jeg skrev det på tavlen som en modsætning til w.w.w., som voksede voldsomt på det tidspunkt. Jeg har siden skrevet flere artikler om begrebet og det er for mig det nærmeste jeg kan komme en beskrivelse af det magiske, der opstår mellem en fortæller og en lytter (eller flere lyttere!).
