GRIEG PEER GYNT SUITES HOLBERG SUITE WEDDING DAY AT TROLDHAUGEN TASMANIAN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA SEBASTIAN LANG-LESSING

Transcription

1 GRIEG PEER GYNT SUITES HOLBERG SUITE WEDDING DAY AT TROLDHAUGEN TASMANIAN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA SEBASTIAN LANG-LESSING

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3 EDVARD GRIEG Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, Op. 46 [15 14] 1 I. Morgenstemning (Morning Mood) II. Åses Død (The Death of Åse) III. Anitras Dans (Anitra s Dance) IV. I Dovregubbens Hall (In the Hall of the Mountain King) 2 25 Peer Gynt Suite No. 2, Op. 55 [18 10] 5 I. Bruderovet. Ingrids Klage (The Abduction of the Bride. Ingrid s Lament) II. Arabisk Dans (Arabian Dance) III. Peer Gynts Hjemfart [Stormful Aften på Havet] (Peer Gynt s Homecoming [Stormy Evening at Sea]) IV. Solveigs Sang (Solveig s Song) 5 45 Fra Holbergs tid (From Holberg s Time): Suite in olden style, Op. 40 [18 55] 9 I. Praeludium (Allegro vivace) II. Sarabande (Andante) 4 02! III. Gavotte (Allegretto) 3 IV. Air (Andante religioso) 5 24 V. Rigaudon (Allegro con brio) 3 42 $ Bryllupsdag på Troldhaugen (Wedding Day at Troldhaugen), Op. 65 No Orchestration by Gottfried Huppertz and Theo M. Tobani Total Playing Time Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra Sebastian Lang-Lessing conductor 3

4 I have written something for the Hall of the Mountain King which smacks so much of cow dung, ultra-norwegianism and self-satisfaction that I quite literally cannot bear to listen to it. That peevish 1874 quote from Grieg on his own music might be somewhat misleading: these days, his Peer Gynt pieces are at least as well loved as Mendelssohn s music for A Midsummer Night s Dream. Grieg supplied his music in response to a request from the playwright Henrik Ibsen, who was planning to adapt his dramatic poem Peer Gynt for the stage. In 1886 Peters of Leipzig offered to publish the complete score, all 26 movements, but Grieg preferred to present a selection of highlights in two concert suites, their eight movements carefully arranged according to their musical sense, rather than keeping to the order in which they appeared in the play. He was surprised but not displeased when these became internationally known and loved. In fact, their quality led the often acerbic Viennese critic Eduard Hanslick to suggest, in 1891, that perhaps in a few years Ibsen s Peer Gynt will live only through Grieg s music, which to my taste has more poetry and artistic intelligence than the whole five-act monstrosity of Ibsen. Hyperbole aside, more than a century later, if we say Peer Gynt, in all likelihood more people would indeed think first of Grieg rather than of Ibsen, despite the grand achievement of the literary work. Ibsen s dramatic poem travels between the worlds of reality, legend, myth and even surreal hallucination, just as its protagonist travels from his native Norway to southern Europe and even northern Africa. It has been described as an ideal subject for a movie, created long before cinema existed. Grieg seemed to understand intuitively how to respond to the challenge of creating the right mood to convey these fantastical scenes almost as if he were the natural composer for Ibsen s film of the imagination. Had he lived in a later era, might we have seen Grieg writing the music for the films of Ingmar Bergman, or even Peter Jackson? Without question, Grieg had the gift of the miniaturist. He could conjure a mood or create an atmosphere with real economy. This is recalled by the painter Wilhelm Peters, who often stayed with the Griegs at their favourite country retreat near Bergen, in the spectacular mountains overlooking the Folgefonn glacier. On stormy days, wrote Peters, when the wind shook our house, rattling doors and windows like spirits playing an immense orchestra, Grieg sat in a corner, listening. 4

5 Like Mozart s, Grieg s ideas seemed to come ready formed. Many composers used reams of paper to shape a work. Not Grieg. Wilhelm Peters watched him often: He wrote his music with a lead pencil, he recalled, rubbed out, substituted and changed again until he was satisfied. Then he wrote it over in ink, and sent to the publisher the same sheet with which he began. Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, Op. 46 Peer Gynt was one of those picaresque characters of fiction who, while adventurous and bold, are also pretty unsavoury figures. Think of a combination of Strauss s character Till Eulenspiegel and Finland s Lemminkäinen, so ably portrayed by Sibelius, and you have an idea of Peer Gynt s personality. The evocative Morning Mood (not only Grieg s most recognised piece, but one of the most famous in all of music) is set not in a postcard Nordic fjord, but the northern African desert. The modulation as the sun breaks the horizon is magical. The Death of Åse recalls other fine laments for strings, especially in its utter simplicity: it barely exists as more than a rising and then descending scale fragment of three to five notes. Nevertheless, Grieg imbues it with truly affecting sadness and tenderness. This sadness however doesn t seem to have much impact on Peer Gynt, whose mother s death it describes. (Her cottage had previously been stripped of its contents in punishment for one of Peer s outrages.) Peer is still in northern Africa when he witnesses Anitra s Dance. Anitra is the daughter of the Bedouin Sherif, and another of Peer s conquests. She dances seductively for our adventurer, her steps accompanied by soft muted strings and triangle. (Small percussion always seems the European metaphor for the exoticism of the east!) Needless to say, Peer rejects her as well. When Peer finds himself in the mythic world of the trolls of his homeland, Grieg describes the scene in one of his most atmospheric pieces: In the Hall of the Mountain King paints the brutish world of the trolls and their ruler, as Norwegian an emblem as the swagman is for Australia (which presumably gave rise to Grieg s dismissal of the piece, quoted earlier). He makes use of a galumphing and accelerating ostinato, distantly reminiscent of the Sorcerer s Apprentice of Dukas or even the Boléro of Ravel (although much shorter). The ensuing pandemonium arises from Peer s refusal to marry the king s daughter, despite her being yet another of his amorous victims. 5

6 Peer Gynt Suite No. 2, Op. 55 The second suite begins with the starkest scene of Ibsen s epic: The Abduction of the Bride Ingrid s Lament. Grieg demonstrates his mastery of the small form in this gem. The declamatory chords of the opening immediately suggest Ingrid s disbelief and horror at being abducted by Peer from her own wedding. There follows a lament in which we hear resignation and a vast sadness. The lament takes the form of a wordless song, strongly recalling Solveig s Song, but here inverted and bitter. The outrage of the opening is revisited at the end, which fades away, signalling Peer s abandonment of Ingrid too. The Arabian Dance has our protagonist once again in Morocco, and suggests, through syncopation and small percussion, a swaying and alluring dance (although it probably has more to do with a tame halling a Norwegian folk dance than anything genuinely Arabian). Peer Gynt s Homecoming (Stormy Evening at Sea) is another triumph in miniature. It belongs with Sibelius s seascape in Lemminkaïnen s Homefaring, and combines Peer s urgent anticipation of seeing his home again with a wonderful picture of towering waves and battering winds. The last piece in this suite is the haunting Solveig s Song. There is perhaps no better example in all of Grieg s music of his rare skill as a melodist. Like all great melodies it is simple in the extreme, but no less memorable for that. Grieg created this instrumental version for the concert suite; in the original play, it is sung by a soprano soloist. Holberg Suite, Op. 40 Grieg described this suite as his perruque-piece, meaning a formulaic work in an old-fashioned style. It was written as a commission to celebrate the bicentenary in 1884 of Ludwig Holberg, the famous Norwegian playwright, philosopher and satirist, often called the Molière of the North. Holberg originated from Bergen, as did Grieg himself. (Grieg was a proud Bergenser, and never especially liked the capital Christiania now Oslo.) The Holberg Suite was originally written for solo piano, and consciously recalls the keyboard works of the clavecinists of the 17th century, especially the keyboard suites of Bach. In fact, the work was among the first to present a late Romantic imitation of Baroque forms; later we would see Ravel, Stravinsky and many others embark on the same exercise. Grieg referred to this work as his poor Holberg Suite, though he was secretly proud of the Rigaudon, in 6

7 particular, with its solo violin and viola, accompanied by the other strings pizzicato. In the end, he had to admit that string orchestras the world over loved the suite. They were to play it often, and more than a century later, it is still as firmly in their repertoire. Wedding Day at Troldhaugen, Op. 65 No. 6 Edvard and Nina Grieg s wedding jubilee fell on 11 June They were roused at their Troldhaugen (literally troll hill ) home at dawn by a military band playing the chorale A Mighty Fortress is our God. They were showered with presents from home and abroad: a brand new Steinway from the Bergen Council, a portrait (now famous) by renowned Norwegian nationalist artist Erik Werenskiold, a silver sugar bowl filled with gold pieces from his publisher Peters in Leipzig, and many other impressive gifts. More than a hundred guests were present, and the ever hospitable Grieg astonished his ever supportive wife by inviting them all to supper. The evening progressed as Nina Grieg sang her husband s songs, which she had been singing for decades, and sang them beautifully. The pièce de théâtre was Grieg s performance, for Nina, of Wedding Day at Troldhaugen, which he wrote for the occasion. It now forms part of one of his many sets of Lyric Pieces. These days the Lyric Pieces are regarded as among Grieg s finest music, surpassed only by his sets of songs. This deceptively simple work goes a long way towards summarising Grieg s essential gift: it s a piece of sophisticated piano music derived from a long tradition of rich folk music, cast in the most lyrical and apparently simple melody. Grieg was always essentially self critical, perhaps to the point where he held himself back. He often seemed to need external motivation to spur him on to write music, and yet he never failed to fulfil any commission precisely and fully. Despite dreaming of writing the definitive Norse opera, the long form in general eluded him. The longest work he wrote was the Piano Concerto, and although he began sketches for a second, it failed to materialise. Nevertheless, he created a genuine and original voice for the music of Norway. Grieg was intensely proud of his heritage. He wrote, on conducting a concert of his music in England, Then I stood and conducted Last Spring, and it sounded as if the whole of nature was calling to me from home; yes, I was proud and glad to be Norwegian. Phil Carrick 7

8 Sebastian Lang-Lessing German-born Sebastian Lang-Lessing has been Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra (TSO) since Awarded the Ferenc Fricsay Prize in Berlin at the age of 24, he subsequently took up a conducting post at the Hamburg State Opera, was appointed resident conductor at the Deutsche Oper Berlin and later Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Orchestre Symphonique et Lyrique de Nancy. Under his direction, the Opéra de Nancy was elevated to national status, becoming the Opéra national de Lorraine. His international career started at the Paris Opera, followed by engagements at Los Angeles Opera, San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Washington National Opera and the opera companies in Oslo and Stockholm. Concert engagements include performances with the Orchestre de Paris, Tokyo Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus and major German radio orchestras. He inaugurated the TSO s annual Sydney season and led the orchestra on a tour of Japan. His discography includes music by the French composer Guy Ropartz and numerous recordings with the TSO including the complete Mendelssohn symphonies (with DVD), the complete Schumann symphonies, Mozart Arias with Sara Macliver, music by Brahms and Schubert with Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Mozart s Symphonies 39, 40 and 41, and works by Brett Dean, Saint-Saëns and Ravel. Forthcoming TSO recordings include Schubert s Unfinished Symphony. His Rienzi at the Deutsche Oper was recently released on DVD. Sebastian Lang-Lessing is also Music Director of the San Antonio Symphony and of Cape Town Opera. 8

9 Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra For more than six decades the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra has been at the forefront of concert life in Tasmania. Established in 1948 and declared a Tasmanian Icon in 1998, the TSO gives more than 40 concerts annually including seasons in Hobart and Launceston, and appearances in Tasmanian regional centres. In recent years the TSO has performed at City Recital Hall Angel Place in Sydney and at the Adelaide Festival, and makes its debut at Melbourne Recital Centre in September International touring has taken the orchestra to North and South America, Greece, Israel, South Korea, China, Indonesia and Japan. Resident in Hobart s purpose-built Federation Concert Hall, the TSO has a full complement of 47 musicians. Sebastian Lang-Lessing has been the orchestra s Chief Conductor and Artistic Director since Australian music is one of the TSO s focal points. Its Australian Music Program, which was founded in 2003, champions music by Australian composers through recordings, performances and commissions, and nurtures promising careers through the annual Australian Composers School. Mindful of its mission to be a source of pride for all Tasmanians, the TSO performs a wide variety of music. Vladimir Ashkenazy, Daniel Barenboim, Alfred Brendel, Lisa Gasteen, Nigel Kennedy, Sara Macliver, Howard Shelley, Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Richard Tognetti are among the soloists who have appeared with the orchestra. Popular and jazz artists who have performed with the orchestra include Rhonda Burchmore, Kate Ceberano, Roberta Flack, James Morrison, Anthony Warlow, Human Nature and The Whitlams. 9

10 Executive Producers Martin Buzacott, Robert Patterson Recording Producer Haig Burnell Recording Engineer Veronika Vincze Editing and Mastering Veronika Vincze Publications Editor Natalie Shea Booklet Design Imagecorp Pty Ltd Cover Image Dangerous Travel Stanislav Pobytov / Vetta / Getty Images For Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra Managing Director Nicholas Heyward Manager, Artistic Planning Simon Rogers Australian Music Program Director Lyndon Terracini Australian Music Program Director Emeritus Richard Mills Orchestra Manager Greg Low Orchestra Coordinator Evan Woodroffe Concertmaster Jun Yi Ma Recorded 5-8 February 2008 in the Federation Concert Hall, Hobart. ABC Classics thanks Lorraine Neilson (Symphony Services International), Laura Bell, Jonathan Villanueva and Virginia Read Australian Broadcasting Corporation Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Universal Music Group, under exclusive licence. Made in Australia. All rights of the owner of copyright reserved. Any copying, renting, lending, diffusion, public performance or broadcast of this record without the authority of the copyright owner is prohibited. 10

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