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Edvard Hagerup Grieg(Norwegian Edvard Hagerup Grieg; June 15, 1843, Bergen, Norway - died September 4, 1907, ibid.) - Norwegian composer of the Romantic period, musical figure, pianist, conductor. Grieg's work was formed under the influence of Norwegian folk culture.

Among Grieg's most famous works are two suites from the music to Henrik Ibsen's drama Peer Gynt, a piano concerto, and violin sonatas.

Grieg focused his attention on songs and romances, of which he published more than 600. About twenty more of his plays were published posthumously. Grieg's vocal compositions were written to the words of Danish and Norwegian, sometimes German poets.

He was buried in his hometown along with his wife, Nina Hagerup, who was the composer’s cousin.

Bergen. Childhood and youth (from birth to 1858)

Edvard Grieg was born on June 15, 1843 in Bergen into a cultured and wealthy family descended from his paternal great-grandfather, the Scottish merchant Alexander Grieg, who moved to Bergen around 1770 and for some time served as British vice-consul in this city. The composer's grandfather, John Grieg, who inherited this position, played in the Bergen orchestra and married the daughter of its chief conductor, Nils Haslund. The composer's father, Alexander Grieg, was a third-generation vice-consul. The composer's mother, Gesina Grieg, née Hagerup, studied piano and vocals in Arfelon with Albert Methfessel, then performed in London, and constantly played music at home in Bergen. performing works by Mozart, Weber], Fryderyk | Chopin, and, as was customary in wealthy families, from childhood she taught music to Edward, his brother and three sisters. The future composer first sat down at the piano at the age of four, and already in childhood he began to be fascinated by the beauty of consonances and harmonies.

Why not remember that mysterious, inexplicable joy that overwhelmed me when, stretching out my hands to the piano, I pulled out - oh no, not a melody! Where there! No, it must have been harmony. First a third, then a triad, then a chord of four notes. And finally, with the help of both hands - oh rejoicing! - five-note, non-chord. When it sounded, my delight knew no bounds. What a success! None of my subsequent successes intoxicated me as much as this one. I was about five years old then.

Edvard Grieg. "My first success." Selected articles and letters

At the age of twelve, Grieg wrote his first piece for piano. Three years later, after graduating from high school, on the urgent advice of the “Norwegian Paganini” - the famous Norwegian violinist Ole Bull, Grieg entered the Leipzig Conservatory to study

Leipzig. Conservatory (1858-1863)

At the famous conservatory, founded in 1843 by Mendelssohn, Grieg was not happy with everything: with his first piano teacher, Louis Plaidy, they diverged so much in tastes and interests (in Grieg’s opinion, Plaidy was a straightforward pedant and an incapable performer) that, at his own request, Edward transferred to the class of Ernst Ferdinand Wenzel. Outside the conservatory, in a city with a developed musical culture in which Johann Sebastian Bach and Robert Schumann lived, Grieg became familiar with the music of modern composers, in particular visiting the Gewandhaus concert hall, where they played the music of Schumann, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner and Chopin. Schumann has since always remained Grieg's favorite composer, and his early works, in particular the piano sonata (1865), bear traces of Schumann's influence. During his studies, Grieg composed "4 Piano Pieces", op. 1 and “4 Romances”, op. 2, based on the words of German poets. In these early works The influence of Grieg's favorite classics is noticeable: Schumann, Schubert, Mendelssohn. In 1862, Grieg graduated from the conservatory with excellent grades. According to professors, during his years of study he proved himself to be “extremely significant musical talent", especially in the field of composition, and also as an outstanding pianist with his characteristic thoughtful and expressive manner of performance." In the same year, in the Swedish city of Karlshamn, he gave his first concert. Later, Grieg recalled without pleasure his years of study at the conservatory - scholastic teaching methods, the conservatism of teachers, their isolation from real life. In tones of good-natured humor, he described his childhood and conservatory years in the autobiographical essay “My First Success” (in Russian it was first published in “Russian music newspaper", 1905). However, Grieg said about his composition teacher Moritz Hauptmann: “He personified for me every opposite of scholasticism.”

Copenhagen. Beginning of career, Euterpe society, marriage (1863-1866)

Nina Hagerup and Edvard Grieg during their engagement, circa 1867

After graduating from the conservatory, Grieg wished to work in his homeland and returned to Bergen. However, his stay in his hometown this time was short-lived - talent young musician could not improve in the conditions of the poorly developed musical culture of Bergen. In 1863 Grieg left for Copenhagen, the center musical life throughout what was then Scandinavia. In the same year, he wrote Poetic Pictures, six pieces for piano, released as opus 3, where national characteristics first appeared in his music. The rhythmic figure underlying the third piece is often found in Norwegian folk music and becomes characteristic of many of Grieg's tunes. In Copenhagen, Grieg became close to a group of like-minded people, inspired by the idea of ​​​​creating a new national art. One of them was Rikard Noordrok, a Norwegian who clearly understood his task as a fighter for Norwegian national music. In communication with him, Grieg’s aesthetic views strengthened and took shape. In 1864, in collaboration with several Danish musicians, they founded the musical society "Euterpe" with the goal of introducing the public to the works of Scandinavian composers. Grieg performed in it as a conductor, pianist and author, and in two years he released “Six Poems” based on poems by the German poets Heine, Uhland and Chamisso (1863-1864); First Symphony (1863-1864); a number of romances with words by Hans Christian Andersen, Rasmus Winter and Andreas Munch; "Humoresques" for piano (1865); First violin sonata (1865); overture “In Autumn” (1866); the only piano sonata (1865-1867). Norwegian folk motives occupy more and more space in his work. After meeting Nurdrok, he wrote:

My eyes were definitely opened! I suddenly comprehended all the depth, all the breadth and power of those distant prospects of which I had no idea before; Only then did I understand the greatness of Norwegian folk art and my own calling and nature.

Also in Copenhagen, Grieg met Nina Hagerup, his cousin with whom he grew up in Bergen, who moved with her family to Copenhagen at the age of eight. During this time she became an adult girl, a singer with a beautiful voice, which the aspiring composer really liked. At Christmas 1864, Grieg proposed to her, and they married in July 1867. Their creative partnership continued throughout their entire life together.

Oslo. Heyday of activity (1866-1874)

Unable to endure the pressure of relatives who, due to an unconventional marriage, turned away from the Griegs, the newlyweds moved to Christiania (Oslo), and closer to the autumn of 1867, Grieg organized a concert as a “report on the achievements of Norwegian composers.” It featured Grieg's first violin sonata and piano sonata, songs by Nurdrok and composer Halfdan Kjerulf. The result was an invitation to the post of conductor of the Christian Philharmonic Society.

Here in Oslo, Grieg's activity flourished. The first notebook of “Lyric Pieces” was published (1867); in 1868, a piano concerto and several collections of romances and songs based on poems by Jorgen Mu, Christopher Janson, Andersen and other Scandinavian poets were published. Critics find the Second Violin Sonata (1867) much more developed, varied and rich than the First. In 1868, the Griegs had a daughter, who was named Alexandra. A year later, the girl fell ill with meningitis and died. What happened put an end to the future happy life families. After the death of her daughter, Nina withdrew into herself, but the couple continued their joint concert activities and went on tour together. In 1869, Grieg discovered a classic collection of Norwegian musical folklore, compiled famous composer and folklorist Ludwig Matthias Lindemann. The result of this was the cycle “25 Norwegian folk songs and dances" for piano, op. 24, consisting of a variety of humorous and lyrical, labor and peasant songs. In 1871, together with the composer Johan Swensen, Grieg founded the concert society “Christiania Musical Association” (now the Oslo Philharmonic Society). Along with the classics, they tried to instill interest and love among listeners in the works of their contemporaries - Schumann, Liszt, Wagner, whose names were not yet known in Norway, as well as in the music of Norwegian authors. In the struggle for their views, they had to face great difficulties from the cosmopolitan-minded big bourgeoisie, but among the advanced intelligentsia, supporters of the original national culture, Grieg found warm support. Then a close friendship began with the writer and public figure Bjornstjerne Bjornson, who had a great influence on creative views composer. Several songs were published in collaboration with Björnson, as well as Sigurd the Crusader (1872), a play in praise of the 12th-century Norwegian king. Also in the early 1870s, Grieg and Björnson were busy thinking about an opera. Their plans were not realized mainly because there were no operatic traditions in Norway. All that remained from the attempt to create an opera was the music for individual scenes of Bjornson’s unfinished libretto “Olav Tryggvason” (1873), based on the legend of King Olav, who baptized Norway in the 10th century. In 1994, the Russian composer and librettist Lev Konov completed the outlines and wrote the children's epic opera Asgard. Franz Liszt, who lived in Rome and did not know Grieg personally, at the end of 1868 became familiar with his First Violin Sonata. He was amazed by the freshness of the music and sent an enthusiastic letter to the author, which played a big role in Grieg’s life: Liszt’s moral support strengthened his ideological and artistic position. In 1870, their personal meeting took place. Noble and generous friend of everything talented in modern music Liszt, who especially warmly supported those who identified the national principle in their work, warmly accepted the composer’s recently completed piano concerto. Telling his family about his meeting with Liszt, Grieg added:

These words mean endlessly to me great importance. It's something of a blessing. And more than once, in moments of disappointment and bitterness, I will remember his words, and the memories of this hour will have a magical power to support me in the days of trials.

In 1874, the Norwegian government awarded Grieg a lifelong government scholarship. He received an offer from the famous Norwegian poet Henrik Ibsen. The result of the work, which was of interest to the composer himself, was the music for the drama Peer Gynt, one of the most famous overtures from Grieg’s entire legacy. By his own admission, Grieg was a fanatical admirer of many of Ibsen's poetic works, especially Peer Gynt. The presentation of the overture in Oslo on February 24, 1876 was accompanied by great success, Grieg's music became increasingly famous in Europe. In Norway it is gaining enormous popularity, penetrating the concert stage and into home life; his works are published by one of the most reputable German publishing houses, and the number of concert trips increases. Wide recognition and financial security allowed Grieg to leave concert activities in the capital and return to Bergen.

Bergen (1874-1885) and "Trollhaugen" (from 1885 until death). Death of the composer

In the late 1870s, Grieg became interested in composing large instrumental works. A piano trio and a piano quintet were conceived. However, only the string quartet (1878), written on the theme of one of the early songs, was completed. In 1881, “Norwegian Dances” for piano four hands (op. 35) were created in Bergen. In the work of Grieg's predecessors, four-handed works were distributed as music accessible to a wide range of fans, hence the simplicity of their concept and style. Grieg has different tendencies - the number and ratio of parts of this suite, dynamics, contrasts, rich texture bring the “Dances” closer to a symphony. That is why the orchestral version of this work became popular. The dampness in Bergen aggravated Grieg’s pleurisy, which he had received at the conservatory, and there was a fear that it could develop into tuberculosis. His wife moved further and further away from him and left in 1883. Grieg lived alone for three months, but then, on the advice of his friend, musicologist Franz Beyer, he reconciled with his wife and, as a sign of this, decided to leave Bergen. Since 1885, Grieg’s main place of residence was Trollhaugen - a villa built by his order near Bergen. A passionate lover of Norway, Grieg spent a long time in the mountains, living in the wilderness among peasants, fishermen and lumberjacks. The poetry of Norwegian nature, the spirit and structure of folk music were reflected in his best works of these years: a ballad for piano, op. 24; First string quartet. In Grieg's letters from that period, similar descriptions of the mountains and nature of Norway are often found. The songs released at that time became hymns to great nature for the composer. Concert trips to Europe over time became systematic. Grieg presented his works in Germany, France, England, Holland, Sweden, both as a conductor and pianist, and while accompanying his wife. Concert activities Grieg did not leave until the end of his days. In January 1888, in Leipzig, Grieg met Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and a friendship arose between the composers. Tchaikovsky admired the poetry of Grieg's music, the freshness and originality of his style. The Hamlet Overture was dedicated to Grieg and a remarkable description of his work was given in Tchaikovsky’s “Autobiographical Description of a Travel Abroad in 1888.” In 1893 they were awarded together honorary titles Doctors from the University of Cambridge. Even earlier, in 1889, Grieg became a member of the French Academy fine arts, in 1872 the Royal Swedish Academy, in 1883 a member of the University of Leiden in Holland. In 1898, Grieg organized the first Norwegian music festival in Bergen, which is still held today. He invariably took part in all events of the Norwegian public life, paid great attention to work concert organizations and choral societies, acted as a critic and publicist. Grieg followed the development of musical life in Europe, gave detailed essays on classical composers (Wagner, Schumann, Mozart, Verdi, Dvorak), and promoted the work of Norwegian composers - Svensen, Kjerulf, Nurdrok. In the 1890s, Grieg’s attention was most busy piano music and songs. From 1891 to 1901, six notebooks of “Lyric Pieces” and more than a dozen song collections were written. In 1903, a new cycle of treatments appeared folk dances for piano. In the last years of his life, Grieg published a witty and lyrical autobiographical story“My first success” and a program article “Mozart and his significance for modern times.” They clearly expressed the composer's creative credo: the desire for originality, for defining his own style, his place in music. Despite his illness, Grieg continued creative activity until the end of life. In April 1907, the composer made a large concert tour of the cities of Norway, Denmark, and Germany. In the same year in the fall, Grieg gathered for music Festival in England. He and his wife stayed at a small hotel in Bergen to wait for a ship to London. There Grieg got worse and had to go to the hospital. On September 4, Edvard Grieg died. His death was celebrated in Norway as national mourning. According to the composer's will, his ashes were buried in a rock above the fjord near his villa. Later a memorial house-museum was founded here.

Creation

The work of Edvard Grieg absorbed the typical features of Norwegian musical folklore - epic and lyrical songs of skalds, melodies of the shepherd's horn, labor and everyday songs. This folklore was formed over many centuries, and its features were consolidated in the XIV-XVI centuries. A significant role in them was played by the reproduction of images of nature, characters from Norwegian folk tales about the underworld - gnomes, kobolds, trolls, brownies, watermen (for example, “Procession of the Dwarves” and “Kobold” from “Lyric Pieces”, “In the Cave of the Mountain King” from "Peer Gynt")

Norwegian folk melodic music is marked by a number of characteristic features that determined the originality of Grieg's musical style. In instrumental music, melodic lines often develop complex patterns in layers of grace notes, mordents, trills, and melodic arrests. These techniques of folk violin music-making are enshrined in many of Grieg's dance plays. Similar techniques penetrate into his vocal music, where melodic suspensions serve to express a wide sigh.

Grieg often used modes that sounded fresh in his time - Dorian, Phrygian. They contributed to the enrichment of his harmonic techniques, including alterations, an unusual combination of keys, chromatic descent of the bass, and the frequent use of an organ point.

In piano pieces op. 17, 35, 63 and 72 Grieg comprehensively depicted the music of such Norwegian dances as springar, halling, gangar, developed before him by violinists, for which Norway has long been famous. He also gave detailed scenes from folk life based on dance intonations and rhythms (“Scenes from rural life", op. 19; “Wedding day in Trollhaugen” from op. 65), they are characterized by lively, energetic rhythms, an active character, sometimes with a touch of humor. Plot motifs are often introduced into dances, especially gangars (in particular, comic scenes called “stabe-loten” are popular). Grieg often used them and often imbued his works with plot-driven programming when he wanted to capture in music the morals and customs of his native people.

Grieg admired the genius of Mozart, while at the same time believing that when he met Wagner “this universal genius, whose soul has always remained alien to any philistinism, would have rejoiced like a child at all the new achievements in the field of drama and orchestra”. Bach for him was “ cornerstone» musical art. In Schumann, he appreciated, first of all, the “warm, deeply cordial tone” of music and considered himself a member of the Schumann school. A tendency towards melancholy and daydreaming makes him similar to German music. “However, we love clarity and brevity more, even our Speaking clear and precise. We strive to achieve this clarity and precision in our art.", stated Grieg. He found many warm words for Brahms, and began his article in memory of Verdi with the words: "The last great one has passed away...".

Grieg turned to the piano throughout his life. In short plays, he recorded a kind of “diary entries” - personal life impressions and observations, in which he himself appears as a fascinating storyteller. The themes of the plays are endowed with such genre specificity, and the rhythmic and harmonic moves contain so much unexpected and fascinating that musical development is like a good short story.

There are two distinct streams in Grieg's piano music. One of them is associated with the expression of personally subjective feelings, and here Grieg is more intimate, turning to the sphere of that “house music” that, since Mendelssohn’s “Songs Without Words,” has occupied a prominent place in European piano lyricism (for example, Tchaikovsky’s piano miniatures). Another stream is associated with the area of ​​genre-characteristic, with folk song and dance. And if in the first case the composer sought to convey poetic individual states, then in the second he was primarily interested in sketching scenes of folk life and pictures of nature.

Of Grieg's approximately one hundred and fifty piano pieces, seventy were published in ten collections of Lyric Pieces. The best of these plays have long been available wide circles music lovers. By nature they are impulsive, improvisational, but committed for the most part within the framework of a three-part composition. The titles of the pieces are in the nature of epigraphs, which are designed to evoke certain associations in connection with the content of the music. The choice of titles is not always successful and sometimes sins as a tribute to salon tradition, which has nothing to do with music. It is marked by great lyrical charm and originality, rich melody, endowed with a lively, warm, vocal breath. That is why original piano pieces and his own transcriptions of his own vocal songs for piano coexist so organically in Grieg’s legacy (op. 41, 52).

List of selected works

• Piano Sonata in E minor, op. 7 (1865)
• Sonata No. 1 for violin and piano in F major, op. 8 (1865)
• “In Autumn” for piano four hands, op. 11, also for orchestra (1866)
• “Lyrical plays”, 10 collections, from 1866 (op. 12) to 1901 (op. 71).
• Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano in G major, op. 13 (1867)
• Concerto for piano and orchestra, op. 16 (1868)
• "Sigurd the Crusader", op. 22, music for the play by Björnstjerne Björnson (1872)
• "Peer Gynt", op. 23, music to the play by Henrik Ibsen (1875)
• String Quartet in G minor, op. 27 (1877-1878)
• “Norwegian Dances” for piano four hands, op. 35, also for orchestra (1881)
• Sonata for cello and piano, op. 36 (1882)
• Sonata No. 3 for violin and piano in C minor, op. 45 (1886-1887)
• Symphonic dances, op. 64 (1898).

Grieg's legacy

Today, Edvard Grieg's work is highly revered, especially in Norway. His works are actively performed as a pianist and conductor by one of the most famous contemporary Norwegian musicians, Leif Ove Andsnes. Grieg's plays are used in artistic and cultural events. Various musical performances, figure skating scenarios and other productions.

Trollhaugen, where the composer lived part of his life, became a house museum open to the public. Here visitors are shown the composer’s native walls, his estate, and interiors. Things that belonged to the composer - a coat, a hat and a violin - still hang on the wall of his work house. Near the estate there is a statue of Grieg in life size and there is his working hut.

In modern culture

• Carl Stalling, a composer for the Warner Bros. film studio, often used the melody from the play "Morning" to illustrate morning scenes in cartoons. Walt Disney's Skeleton Dance (1929) features Edvard Grieg's "Procession of the Dwarves" (or Troll Dance in the Mountain King's Cave)
• The musical play “The Technicolor Chimney Sweep” (1957), based on the story by the Brothers Grimm, used exclusively Grieg’s music.
• The musical Song of Norway (1970) is based on events in Grieg's life and uses his music.
• Edvard Grieg's music was used in the cartoons "The Legend of Grieg" (1967), "The Old House" (1977), "Peer Gynt" (1979), "Basket with fir cones"(1989), "Dwarves and the Mountain King" (1993).
• Rainbow - Hall of the Mountain King (album Stranger in Us All, 1995) - a hard rock composition based on the music of the play "In the Cave of the Mountain King" with lyrics by Candice Knight (wife of Ritchie Blackmore, the band's guitarist). The song Vikingtid by the Russian pagan metal band Butterfly Temple from the album “Dreams of the North Sea” also contains fragments of this work by Grieg.
• The first movement of the piano concerto is used in Adrian Lyne's film Lolita (1997).
• Movement of Siuta No. 1, Op. 46 (“Morning mood”) is often used in propaganda videos of the Russian political party “Patriots of Russia”

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Real world fame He was brought a piece of music for the production of Peer Gynt, written at the request of Henrik Ibsen. Edvard Grieg's composition "In the Cave of the Mountain King" has become one of the recognizable classical melodies.

Origin

Edvard Grieg was born in the city of Bergen on the shores of the North Sea into a wealthy and cultured family. His paternal great-grandfather, the Scottish merchant Alexander Grieg, moved to Bergen in the 1770s. For some time he served as British Vice-Consul in Norway. The grandfather of the outstanding composer inherited this position. John Grieg played in a local orchestra. He married the daughter of the chief conductor N. Haslund.

Alexander Grieg, father of Edvard Grieg, was the third generation acting vice-consul. The mother of the outstanding composer, Gesina, née Hagerup, studied vocals and piano playing with Albert Methfessel, a court singer in Rudolstadt, performed in London, and constantly played music in Bergen, loved to perform works by Chopin, Mozart and Weber.

The composer's childhood

In wealthy families, it was customary to educate children at home from childhood. Edvard Grieg, his brother and three sisters got acquainted with the wonderful world of music under the strict guidance of their mother. He first sat down at the piano at just four years old. Even then, Edward began to be fascinated by the beauty of harmonies and melodies. In the collection " Featured articles and Letters" contains a touching short recording by Grieg about his first success in music.

Edvard Grieg wrote his first work at the age of twelve. Three years after graduation famous violinist, “Norwegian Paganini” Ole Bull, advised young man continue making music. The boy really showed extraordinary talent. So Edvard Grieg entered the conservatory in Leipzig, the city where Robert Schumann and Johann Sebastian Bach worked.

Studying at the conservatory

In 1858, Grieg entered the famous conservatory founded by Mendelssohn. The establishment has earned a good reputation. But Edvard Grieg was dissatisfied with his first teacher, Louis Plaidy. Grieg considered the teacher to be an incapable performer and a straightforward pedant; they differed strikingly in tastes and interests.

At his own request, Edvard Grieg was transferred to the leadership of Ernst Ferdinand Wenzel. German composer studied philosophy in Leipzig, then studied piano with Friedrich Wieck, became close to Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms. He came to teach at the conservatory at the personal invitation of Felix Mendelssohn. He remained in this post until the end of his life.

During his years of study, Edvard Grieg was actively involved in the work of modern composers. He often visited the Gewandhaus concert hall. This is the home venue of the orchestra of the same name. In that concert hall, which had unique acoustics, premiered at one time famous works Schubert, Wagner, Brahms, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann and others.

From the composer's youth, Schumann remained his favorite musician. Edvard Grieg's early works (especially the piano sonata) have been preserved character traits Schumann's works. In Grieg's early works the influence of Mendelssohn and Schubert is clearly felt.

In 1862, composer Edvard Grieg graduated from the Leipzig Conservatory with excellent marks. The professors said that he showed himself to be a significant musical talent. The young man achieved particular success in the field of composition. He was also called an extraordinary pianist with an amazing performance style.

Edvard Grieg gave his first concert in Karlshamn, Sweden. The lively port town warmly welcomed the young composer. The composer good-naturedly described his early years, childhood and studies at the conservatory in the essay “My First Success.”

Years later, Grieg recalled his time studying without pleasure. The teachers were detached from real life and conservative, using scholastic methods. However, Grieg said about Moritz Hauptmann, the composition teacher, that he was the complete opposite of scholasticism.

Carier start

After graduating from the conservatory, Edvard Grieg chose to work in his native Bergen. But his stay in his hometown did not last long. Talent could not be fully developed in the creative environment of Bergen. Then Grieg hastily left for the city of Copenhagen, which in those years was the center cultural life all over Scandinavia.

In 1863, Edvard Grieg wrote Poetic Pictures. The work of six pieces for piano is the composer’s first music in which national features were revealed. The third piece is based on a rhythmic figure that is often found in Norwegian folk music. This figure will become characteristic of Grieg's work.

In Copenhagen, the composer became close to a group of like-minded people who were inspired by the idea of ​​​​forming a new art. National motives in European art in those years they took up more and more space. Actively created national literatures, now trends have come into music and visual arts.

One of Edvard Grieg's like-minded people was Rikard Nurdrock. The Norwegian was clearly aware of his goal as a fighter for national music. Aesthetic views Griga became significantly stronger and finally formed precisely in communication with Nurdrok. In alliance with several others creative people they founded the Euterpe society. The goal was to introduce the public to the works national composers.

For two years, Edvard Grieg acted as a pianist, conductor and author, wrote “Six Poems” based on poems by Chamisso, Heine and Uhland, the First Symphony, several romances based on words by Andreas Munch, Hans Christian Andresen, and Rasmus Winter. In those same years, the composer wrote the only piano sonata, First Violin Sonata, “Humoresques” for piano.

Norwegian motifs occupied more and more space in these works. Grieg wrote that he suddenly realized the depth and power of those prospects that he had previously had no idea about. He realized the greatness of Norwegian folklore and his own calling.

Marriage

In Copenhagen, Edvard Grieg met Nina Hagerup. This girl is his cousin, with whom he grew up in Bergen. Nina moved to Copenhagen with her family at the age of eight. During this time she matured and became a singer with amazing voice, which the novice composer really liked. At Christmas (1864), Edvard Grieg proposed to the girl, and in the summer of 1867 they got married.

In 1869, the couple had a daughter, Alexandra, who fell ill with meningitis at a young age and died. This tragic event put an end to the further happy life of the family. After the death of her firstborn, Nina withdrew into herself and fell into severe depression. The couple continued their joint creative activities and went on tour together.

Heyday of activity

Because of the unconventional marriage, all relatives turned away from Grieg. The newlyweds immediately after the wedding moved to Oslo, and closer to the autumn of the same year, the composer organized a concert. It featured the first sonata for piano and violin, works by Halfdan Kjerulf, Nurdrok. After this, Edvard Grieg was invited to the post of conductor of the Christian Society.

It was in Oslo that Grieg's creative activity flourished. The first notebook of “Lyric Pieces” was shown to the public, and the next year several romances and songs by Christopher Janson, Jorgen Mu in collections, Andersen and other Scandinavian poets were published. Critics rated Grieg's Second Sonata as much richer and more varied than the First.

Edvard Grieg soon began to rely on a collection of Norwegian folklore compiled by Ludwig Matthias Lindemann. The result was a cycle of twenty-five songs and dances for piano. The collection consisted of various lyrical, peasant, labor and comic songs.

In 1871, Grieg (together with Johan Swensen) founded the Christiania Musical Association. Today it is the Oslo Philharmonic Society. They tried to instill in the public a love not only for the classics, but also for the works of contemporaries, whose names were not yet heard in Norway (Liszt, Wagner, Schumann), as well as for the music of Russian authors.

In their desire to defend their views, composers had to face difficulties. The cosmopolitan-minded big bourgeoisie did not appreciate such enlightenment, but Grieg found a response and support among the advanced intelligentsia and supporters of national culture. Then a friendship began with Bjornstjerne Bjornson, a writer and public figure who had a great influence on the musician’s creative views.

After their collaboration began, several co-authored works were published, as well as a play, Sigurd the Crusader, in praise of the twelfth-century king. In the early 1870s, Bjornson and Grieg thought about opera, but their creative plans did not come true because Norway did not have its own operatic traditions. The attempt to create a work ended only with music for individual scenes. The Russian composer completed his colleagues' sketches and wrote the children's opera Asgard.

At the end of 1868, Franz Liszt, who lived in Rome, became acquainted with his First Violin Sonata. The composer was amazed at how fresh the music was. He sent an enthusiastic letter to the author. This played a significant role in the creative biography and in general in the life of Edvard Grieg. The moral support of the composer strengthened the ideological and artistic positions of the creative society.

A personal meeting with the composer took place in 1870. A generous and noble friend of everything talented in modern music, he warmly supported everyone who identified a national element in his work. Liszt openly admired Grieg's recently completed piano concerto. Telling his family about this meeting, Edvard Grieg mentioned that these words of his colleague were of great importance to him.

The Norwegian government awarded Grieg a lifelong government scholarship in 1872. At the same time, he received an offer from As a result of the collaboration of the European playwright, the founder of the European “new drama” and the composer, music for the work “Peer Gynt” appeared. Edvard Grieg was an admirer of many of Ibsen's works, and this music became one of the most famous overtures from the composer's entire legacy.

The overture premiered in 1876 in Oslo. The performance was accompanied dizzying success. Grieg's music became more and more famous in Europe, and in Norway his work gained enormous popularity. The composer's works were published in reputable publishing houses, and the number of concert trips increased significantly. Recognition and financial independence allowed Grieg to return to Bergen.

Large works

Since the late seventies, Edvard Grieg has been passionate about creating major works. He conceived a piano quintet and a piano trio, but only completed a string quintet on the theme of one of the early songs. In Bergen he created “Dances” for piano four hands. The orchestra version of this work became especially popular.

The songs released at that time became hymns to our native nature. The poetry of folk music is reflected in best works Edvard Grieg of those years, and in his letters there are detailed and surprisingly insightful descriptions of nature. Over time, he began to systematically travel to Europe with concerts. Grieg presented his most talented works in Sweden, England, Germany, France, and Holland. He did not give up his concert activities until the end of his days.

Last years and death

Immediately after moving to Bergen, the composer suffered from aggravated pleurisy, which he received while still at the conservatory. There was concern that the disease could develop into tuberculosis. Grieg's health was also negatively affected by the fact that his wife was moving away from him. In 1882 she left, the composer lived alone for three months, but then he made peace with Nina.

Since 1885, the couple's place of residence was Trollhaugen - a villa that was built by order of Edvard Grieg near Bergen. He lived in the wilderness of the village, communicating with peasants, lumberjacks and fishermen.

Despite his serious illness, Edvard Grieg continued his creative activity until the end of his life. On September 4, 1907, he died. The death of the composer in Norway became a day of national mourning. His ashes were buried in a rock near the Trollhaugen villa. Later a museum was founded in the house.

Characteristics of creativity

Edvard Grieg's music absorbed the national features of Norwegian folklore, which was formed over the centuries. The reproduction of images played a huge role in his music. native nature, characters from Norwegian tales. For example, the composition “In the Cave of the Mountain King” by Edvard Grieg is one of his most recognizable works. This is an amazing creation.

The composition premiered in 1876 in Oslo (part of Edvard Grieg's suite). The king's cave is associated with gnomes, a mysterious atmosphere; in general, the work sounds when the mountain king and his trolls enter the cave. This is one of the most recognizable (along with “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Rimsky-Korsakov and “Fortune” by Carl Orff) classical themes, which has gone through dozens of adaptations.

The composition “In the Cave...” by Edvard Grieg begins with the main theme, which was written for double bass, cello and bassoon. The melody gradually rises to a fifth and then returns to the lower key. “The Mountain King” by Edvard Grieg accelerates with each repetition, and at the end it breaks down to a very fast pace.

Folklore characters had previously been portrayed as ugly and evil, and peasants as rude and cruel. In Denmark and Norway, Ibsen's play was received negatively, and Andersen even called the work meaningless. Thanks to the music of Edvard Grieg and Solveig (as an image), a rethinking of the play began. Later, the play "Peer Gynt" gained worldwide fame.

The composer represented nature very melodiously in his works. He observed the pristine forests, the changing parts of the day, and the life of animals. The melody of “Morning” by Edvard Grieg began to be used to illustrate certain scenes in Warner Bros. cartoons.

Grieg's legacy

The work of Edvard Grieg today is especially actively revered in his native Norway. His works are actively performed by one of the most famous Norwegian musicians, Leif Ove Andsnes. The composer's plays are used in cultural and artistic events. The villa, where the composer lived part of his life, became a museum. Near the estate there is a statue of Grieg and his working hut.

Edvard Grieg (1843-1907) was the first Norwegian composer whose work went beyond the borders of his country and became the property of pan-European culture. Thanks to Grieg, the Norwegian music school became on a par with other national schools in Europe, although its development took place in very difficult conditions.

For a long time (until 1905) Norway could not achieve state independence. Political dependence on Denmark (XIV-XVIII centuries) and Sweden (XIX centuries) hampered the development of the country's economy and culture (until the middle of the 19th century, it not only did not have professional art, but also a single state language).

Vital and creative path Grieg coincided with a period of unusually bright flowering of Norwegian culture, associated with the awakening of national self-awareness. In the 60-70s of the 19th century, leading Norwegian artists turned to the study national epic, folk tales, musical folklore. In Bergen, Grieg's homeland, the National Norwegian Theater was opened, headed by Henrik Ibsen (the most prominent Norwegian playwright, author of the drama "Peer Gynt"). Outstanding violinist-improviser Ole Bull began to promote Norwegian folk music, fulfilling their own concert fantasies on folklore themes. Author of the Norwegian national anthem Nurdrock Together with Grieg, he created the musical society “Euterpa” in Copenhagen, the purpose of which was to disseminate and promote the work of young Scandinavian composers. He became the author of numerous romances Hjerulf . And yet it was Grieg who managed to deduce music school Norway to the world level. The image of Norway became the semantic center of all Grieg’s creativity. Its embodiment is associated either with the heroism of the Norwegian epic, or with images of national history and literature, or with the fantasy of Scandinavian fairy tales or pictures of the harsh northern nature. The most profound and artistically perfect generalization of the epic image of the homeland were the 2 orchestral suites “Peer Gynt”, in which Grieg gave his interpretation of Ibsen’s plot. Leaving out the characterization of Per - an adventurer, an individualist and a rebel - Grieg created a lyrical-epic poem about Norway, sang the beauty of its nature (“Morning”), and painted whimsical fairy-tale images (“In the Cave of the Mountain King”). The meaning of eternal symbols has been found lyrical images Per's mother, old Ose, and his fiancée Solveig.

Grieg's vividly original style was formed under the influence of Norwegian folklore, which has a very long history. Its traditions were formed in the lyrical-epic songs of the skalds, in shepherd mountain melodies ( lockah), V Norwegian dances and marches.

Grigovskys melodies absorbed the most characteristics Norwegian folk songs, such as the combination of pentatonic moves with tritone ones, or the melodic turn T - introductory tone - D. This intonation, which has become a peculiar musical symbol Norway, is found very often in Grieg's music (for example, in many themes, in the "Nocturne" from the "Lyric Pieces"). Often it “moves” to other steps of the scale, as, for example, in Solveig's song, where this melodic move comes from D (through the raised IV degree), and then from S.

Under the influence of folklore, characteristic features also developed harmony Griga:

• abundance of organ points;
• frequent use of Lydian and Dorian modes;
• raising the fourth degree of the mode in both major and minor is Grieg’s favorite alteration;
• flexible modal variability, as a kind of play of “light and shadow” (minor D in major, major S in minor, etc.) t. slow part of the fp. concert

In general, the harmonic language of Grieg's works is distinguished by its particular colorfulness and the widespread use of multi-tert chords, which is again rooted in Norwegian folklore (many Norwegian melodies contain several third moves in one direction).

Most directly associated with Norwegian folklore are numerous Grieg dances. They rely on the peculiar rhythm of Norwegian Hallings, Springdans, Gangars. Gangar - This is a Norwegian peasant march. Halling - solo male dance with very complex, almost acrobatic movements. Springdance (or springar) - a perky “jumping dance”. Grieg often emphasizes the typical rhythmic details of all these dances - a combination of triplet and dotted patterns, unexpected accents on weak beats, all kinds of syncopations.

IN creative heritage Grieg presents almost all musical genres - piano, vocal, symphonic (overture “In Autumn”, suite “From the Times of Holberg” for string orchestra) and vocal-symphonic (theater music), chamber-instrumental (string quartet, 3 sonatas for violin and piano, 1 sonata for cello and piano). And yet he showed himself most clearly in the field miniatures - piano and vocal. Contemporaries called him a brilliant miniaturist, a master of small forms.

Where his personal life observations, impressions of the surrounding world, nature, thoughts and feelings, thoughts about the Motherland are captured. The composer wrote about 150 piano miniatures. 66 of them are included in the cycle of 10 notebooks “Lyrical Pieces”, which took the main place in his piano creativity(besides him - “Poetic pictures”, “Humoresques”, “From folk life”, “Album sheets”, “Waltzes-caprices”). Grieg also dedicated 3 to the piano major works: sonata e-moll, a ballad in the form of variations and a piano concerto, one of the best in concert literature.

Along with piano music (about 150 songs and romances, including vocal cycles “Melodies of the Heart” to the words of H.H. Andersen, “Across the Rocks and Fjords”, “Norway”, “Child of the Mountains”). It is significant that the basis of Grieg’s vocal compositions was Norwegian poetry (poems by Bjornson, Paulsen, Ibsen).

Grieg proved himself not only as a composer. He was also an excellent performer (he performed as a conductor and pianist, most often in collaboration with the singer Nina Hagerup, who was his wife); music critic; public figure (headed the Philharmonic Society in Christiania, held the first festival of Norwegian music in Bergen, etc.)

Before recent years Grieg's educational activities continued throughout his life (directing concerts of the Bergen musical society"Harmony", organization of the first Norwegian music festival in 1898). Concentrated work as a composer was replaced by tours (Germany, Austria, England, France); they contributed to the spread of Norwegian music in Europe, brought new connections, acquaintances with the largest modern composers- I. Brahms, C. Saint-Saens, M. Reger, F. Busoni.

This is mainly music for dramatic performances. The opera "Olav Trygvason" remained unfinished.

Edvard Grieg was born on June 15, 1843 in Bergen. He brought glory to Norway. His work won the hearts of not only the inhabitants of this northern country, but also music lovers all over the world. And she was present in little Edward’s life from birth.

Grieg's mother, a pianist who performs in concerts in Bergen, became the first teacher musical notation for my son. Already at the age of six, the boy began to comprehend the basics of the world of music. Scales, keys, etudes, arpeggios, musical notations - all this became firmly established in his life.

The work of Mozart had a huge influence on the growing musician. Mozart had a phenomenal musical gift. His music brought true joy to the boy.

Edvard Grieg did not become a favorite of fortune from the first steps of his career. The beginning was difficult. His first works did not impress listeners. But we must pay tribute to the parents - they always supported Edward. At the age of 15, he became a student at the Leipzig Conservatory, from which he successfully graduated in 1862, receiving a honors diploma.

Edvard Grieg moved to Copenhagen, where fate brought him together with the Norwegian composer Rikard Nurdrok (one of the authors of the Norwegian national anthem) and the Danish composer Niels Gade, who became both teachers and friends of the musician. Under their guidance, the composing skills of the novice author are improved. Subsequently, Edvard Grieg dedicated the first edition of his piano concerto to Nurdrock's memory.

The works of the famous Norwegian composer are known to everyone - this is the music for Ibsen's drama "Peer Gynt", piano concertos, a notebook of "Lyric Pieces", sonatas for violin and piano, song compositions on poems by Andersen, Bjornson, Ibsen, musical arrangement for the dramatic monologue “Bergliot”, suites for string orchestra, variations on Norwegian folk melodies, romances, vocal miniatures, dance melodies and much more.

Grieg has many compositions that touch the human soul. This lyrical works“To Norway”, “From the Rocks and Fiords”, “I Love You” and others.

The main feature of the great master’s work is that he introduced elements of the national flavor of the northern country into his music. All his work is closely intertwined with the life of the Norwegian people, their culture, customs, way of life, and pictures of their native nature that are dear to the heart. Norwegian folk motifs, tunes, melodies of the native hinterland - this is the source that became the main source for the composer when creating original Norwegian music.

Edvard Grieg is a classic of Norwegian music. Thanks to his creativity, small Norway stands on a par with the best musical powers in Europe.