born in bergen, norway in 1843. his mother was a gifted pianist. she taught him music and piano. ...

Peer Gynt Suite No. 1By Edvard Grieg

Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)

Born in Bergen, Norway in 1843. His mother was a gifted pianist. She taught him music and piano. Grieg was a nationalist composer. He used Norwegian folk music in his

compositions. He composed orchestral, chamber and

piano music as well as 120 songs.

Henry Ibsen asked Grieg to compose the music for his play Peer Gynt.

The premiere of this play was in 1876 It was a huge success. This made Grieg a well known national

figure. The incidental music from Peer Gynt

was later arranged into a suite by Grieg.

Grieg died in 1907 after a long period of illness.

The Story of Peer Gynt

Peer Gynt is a character from the 18th century.

Legend has it that he wasn’t invited to a wedding so he gate crashed it.

He took the bride and abandoned her in the mountains, making him a wanted criminal.

He took refuge in the underground caves in the land of the trolls

He was attacked by the trolls. He built a hut high in the mountains,

with a village girl, Solveig who loved him.

He left her to visit his dying mother He was still in risk of capture. He also went to Morroco and met Anitra She danced for him and stole

everything from him. Leaving him stranded in the dessert. Finally he returned home where Solveig

had been waiting for him.

About Peer Gynt Suite No. 1

It was originally Incidental Music: background music performed before and between acts of a play.

It was later arranged into a Suite: music originally composed for a ballet or play which a composer rearranges into for performance in a concert.

It is also Programme music which is music that tells a story.

The Three Sections

Morning Intended to introduce scene in the

Sahara Desert. It is influenced by the Norwegian

landscape. The sun rising over the mountains and

fjords.

The Three Sections

Anitras Dance Anitra is a dancer who dances for Peer. She then steals everything from him. And leaves him stranded in the

dessert.

The Three Section

In the Hall of the Mountain King The trolls emerge from the dark shadowy

caves and surround Peer. They dance and taunt him until he is terrified. The tension is built up by a melodic ostinato,

played 18 times. It begins low and dark which is registered by

the cellos, basses and bassoons. The music builds to a high point in a dramatic

crescendo.

The InstrumentsOrchestra Morning Anitras Dance In the Hall of

the Mountain King

Woodwind FlutesOboesClarinets in A (transposing)Bassoons

PiccoloFluteOboeClarinet in ABassoon

Brass 4 French horns2 Trumpets

4 French horns2 Trumpets2 Tenor trombonesBass tromboneTuba

Percussion Timpani Triangle TimpaniBass drumCymbals

Strings Violin 1/2ViolaCelloDouble bass

Violin 1/2 (mute)Viola (mute)Cello (mute)Double bass

Violin 1/2ViolaCelloDouble bass

MO

RN

ING

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ya5ICVKUERg

Morning

Time Signature: 6/8 Key Signature: E major Texture: homophonic-a melody

supported by chords Tempo: Allegretto pastorale, a little

fast and pastoral. Tonality: major Form: Ternary: A B A Coda

Morning: 4 Musical features

Ornamentation: decoration in melody e.g. grace notes (bar 2), trills (bar 72).

Antiphony: question and answer, the flute and the oboe have a “conversation” in bars 1-20.

Dynamics: capture the scene of the sunrise.

Sequence: the repetition of a melodic idea up or down a step bar 39.

The Music in words

a. The movement begins with the (i)f_ _ _ _ playing the main 4-bar melody. This is repeated an (ii)o_ _ _ _ _ lower by another woodwind instrument the (iii)o_ _ _. These two instruments continue to share this theme, alternating with each other, at 4-bar, the 1-bar, then half-bar intervals. The (iv)s_ _ _ _ family then takes over the theme, playing (v)f_ _ _ _ (loudly). There is a crescendo building up to the highpoint in bar 30.

b. The next section begins with a dramatic flowing melody on a lower string instrument, the (i)c_ _ _ _. The (ii)d_ _ _ _ _ _ _ vary a lot, from piano to (iii)f_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. The strings have lots of (iv)s_ _ _-q_ _ _ _ _ _. The music in this section (v)m _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ (changes key) several times.

c. At bar 50, the (i)h_ _ _ plays the main tune, now in the key of C major. This instrument belongs to the (ii)b_ _ _ _ family. A long chord follows on the (iii)s_ _ _ _ _ _. The (iv)c _ _ _ _, (v)b _ _ _ _ _ _ and (vi)o_ _ _ then take up the melody and it returns to E major. The (vii)h_ _ _ finishes this section with some long notes.

d. The coda begins quietly on the (i)s_ _ _ _ _ _, answered by a mellow-sounding woodwind instrument, the (ii) c_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. Long sustained chords on the horn, with rallentando, lead to the (iii) f_ _ _ _ echoing the first two bars of the piece, followed by the (iv)b_ _ _ _ _ _. The final bars feature the strings and the full orchestra, (v)t_ _ _ _.

AN

ITR

AS

DA

NC

E

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZK6mzxQUQog

Anitras Dance

Time Signature: 3/4 Key Signature: A minor and D major Texture: homophonic- melody supported

by chords and polyphonic- more than one melody playing at the same time.

Tempo: Mazurka- lively Tonality: modal, minor in section A and

major in section B Form: Ternary: A B A

4 Musical Features

It has only one percussion instrument, the triangle. The other instruments are from the string section the violin, viola, cello and double bass.

The stringed instruments play both pizzicato (plucked) e.g. bar 3 and arco (with a bow) e.g. bar 23.

Trills are rapid alternation between 2 notes, e.g. bar 9 and grace notes e.g. bar 54.

The tonality changes from minor (bars 1-38) to major (bars 39-41) and then minor again (bars 42-91), therefore it is modal.

IN T

HE H

ALL O

F TH

E M

OU

NTA

IN

KIN

G

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrIYT-MrVaI

In the Hall of the Mountain King

Time Signature: 4/4 Key signature: B minor Texture: homophonic- melody supported

by chords and polyphonic- more than one melody playing at the same time.

Tempo: alla marcia e molto marcato: march like but marked

Tonality: minor Form: ritarnello: which is a recurring

passage of music

4 Musical Features

A 4 bar melody is repeated 18 times throughout the piece, this is a melodic ostinato.

• An ostinato is a melodic or rhythmic pattern repeated over and over again.

The dynamics are gradually leading to a highpoint at the end therefore it is crescendo throughout the whole piece.

Sringendo al fine is written on this music, this means hurry to the end.

Tremolo: technic used on drums, if there are 2 lines on the note you quarter the value playing in the same time and if there is only 1 then you half it.

By Éle, Emma and Orlaigh.

29th/10th/2012