''Lyric Pieces'' ( no, Lyriske stykker) is a collection of 66 short pieces for solo

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

written by

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...

. They were published in 10 volumes, from 1867 ( Op. 12) to 1901 (Op. 71). The collection includes several of his best known pieces, such as '' Wedding Day at Troldhaugen'' (''Bryllupsdag på Troldhaugen''), ''To Spring'' (''Til våren''), ''March of the Trolls'' (''Trolltog''), and ''Butterfly'' (''Sommerfugl''). The theme of the first piece in the set, ''Arietta'', was one of the composer's favorite melodies. He used it to complete the cycle in his last lyric piece, ''Remembrances'' (''Efterklang'') — this time as a

waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the w ...

. The first complete recording of the ''Lyric Pieces'' was recorded and released in the Soviet Union by Alexander Goldenweiser in the 1950s. In 2002, Norwegian

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

Leif Ove Andsnes Leif Ove Andsnes (; born 7 April 1970) is a Norwegian pianist and chamber musician. Andsnes has made several recordings for Virgin and EMI. In 2012, Leif Ove Andsnes has signed to Sony Classical, and recorded for the label the "Beethoven Journe ...

recorded a CD with 24 of the lyric pieces on Grieg's own 1892

Steinway Steinway & Sons, also known as Steinway (), is a German-American piano company, founded in 1853 in Manhattan by German piano builder Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg (later known as Henry E. Steinway). The company's growth led to the opening of a ...

grand piano at

Troldhaugen Troldhaugen is the former home of Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg and his wife Nina Grieg. Troldhaugen is located in Bergen, Norway and consists of the Edvard Grieg Museum, Grieg's villa, the hut where he composed music, and his and his wife's ...

, the composer's residence. Among other notable pianists to have made recordings of the collection are

Håkon Austbø Håkon Austbø (born October 22, 1948) is a Norwegian classical pianist. He has created many recordings for the label Brilliant Classics and Naxos Records, and is also a professor at the Amsterdam conservatory. Born in Kongsberg, Austbø studie ...

Aldo Ciccolini Aldo Ciccolini (; 15 August 1925 – 1 February 2015) was an Italian pianist who became a naturalized French citizen in 1971. Biography Aldo Ciccolini was born in Naples. His father, who bore the title of Marquis of Macerata, worked as a typogr ...

Andrei Gavrilov Andrei Gavrilov (in Russian Андрей Гаврилов; born September 21, 1955) is a Swiss pianist of Russian background. Early life and music career Andrei Gavrilov was born into a family of artists in Moscow. His father was Vladimir Gav ...

Walter Gieseking Walter Wilhelm Gieseking (5 November 1895 – 26 October 1956) was a French-born German pianist and composer. Gieseking was renowned for his subtle touch, pedaling, and dynamic control—particularly in the music of Debussy and Ravel; he made int ...

Emil Gilels Emil Grigoryevich Gilels ( Russian: Эми́ль Григо́рьевич Ги́лельс; 19 October 1916 – 14 October 1985) was a Russian pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time. Early life and educati ...

Stephen Hough Sir Stephen Andrew Gill Hough (; born 22 November 1961) is a British-born classical pianist, composer and writer. He became an Australian citizen in 2005 and thus has dual nationality (his father was born in Australia in 1926). Biography Houg ...

Eva Knardahl Eva Knardahl Freiwald (10 May 1927 – 3 September 2006) was a Norwegian pianist, with a noted career both as a child prodigy and adult performer. Her debut with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 12, in which she played three conce ...

, Juhani Lagerspetz, Daniel Levy, Irina Mejoueva, Isabel Mourão,

Gerhard Oppitz Gerhard Oppitz (born 5 February 1953, Frauenau) is a German classical pianist. He studied with Paul Buck, Hugo Steurer and Wilhelm Kempff. In 1981 he was appointed professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München Javier Perianes Javier Perianes (born in 1978 in Nerva, Spain) is a Spanish classical pianist. He is a participant at many renowned festivals within Spain, including Santander, Granada, Peralada and San Sebastián. He has performed in distinguished concert serie ...

Sviatoslav Richter Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter, group= ( – August 1, 1997) was a Soviet classical pianist. He is frequently regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time, Great Pianists of the 20th Century and has been praised for the "depth of his int ...

and Einar Steen-Nøkleberg. A few recordings and piano rolls of Grieg himself performing also exist, and they have been published by the Norwegian record label Simax. Four of the six pieces from Book V, Op. 54, were orchestrated under the title of '' Lyric Suite''. Both Grieg and

Anton Seidl Anton Seidl (7 May 185028 March 1898) was a famous Hungarian Wagner conductor, best known for his association with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City and the New York Philharmonic. Biography He was born in Pest, Austria-Hungary, where ...

had a hand in the orchestrations. Grieg also orchestrated two of the pieces from Book IX, Op. 68.

Complete listing

Even though it was published in several volumes, some publishers, such as

Edition Peters Edition Peters is a classical music publisher founded in Leipzig, Germany in 1800. History The company came into being on 1 December 1800 when the Viennese composer Franz Anton Hoffmeister (1754–1812) and the local organist Ambrosius Kühnel ...

, have numbered the pieces as a whole, thereby numbering the 66 pieces in order, instead of numbering each volume individually. The movement list is as follows: Book I, Op. 12 (composed 1866-7?; published 1867): # ''Arietta'' # ''Vals'' (Waltz) # ''Vektersang'' (Watchman's song, after '' Macbeth'') # ''Alfedans'' (Elves' dance) # ''Folkevise'' (Popular melody) # ''Norsk'' (Norwegian melody) # ''Albumblad'' (Albumleaf) # ''Fedrelandssang'' (National song) Book II, Op. 38 (composed 1883 except where noted; published 1883): # ''Berceuse'' # ''Folkevise'' (Folk-song) # ''Melodi'' (Melody) # ''Halling'' (Dance) # ''Springdans'' (Spring dance)Although ''Spring Dance'' is the traditional translation of the Norwegian ''Springdans'', the word refers to its sense in English of ''"leap"'' or ''"jump"'' rather than to the season "spring". The booklet notes to ''Grieg: Complete Works for Piano Solo; Gerhard Oppitz, Piano'' (RCA Victor Red Seal 09026-61569-2, (c) & (P) 1993) use the less ambiguous translation ''"Leaping Dance"''. # ''Elegi'' (Elegy) # ''Vals'' (Waltz, originally composed 1866; revised 1883) # ''Kanon'' (Canon, composed ca. 1877-8?; revised 1883) Book III, Op. 43 (composed probably 1886; published 1886; ded.

Isidor Seiss Isidor Wilhelm Seiss (23 December 184025 September 1905) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, piano pedagogue and philanthropist. His surname also appears as Seiß, and his first name also appears as Isidore. Biography Isidor Wilhelm Seiss ...

): # ''Sommerfugl'' (Butterfly) # ''Ensom vandrer'' (Solitary traveller) # ''I hjemmet'' (In my homeland) # ''Liten fugl'' (Little bird) # ''Erotikk'' (Erotikon) # ''Til våren'' (To spring) Book IV, Op. 47 (composed 1886-8 except where noted; published 1888): # ''Valse-Impromptu'' # ''Albumblad'' (Albumleaf) # ''Melodi'' (Melody) # '' Halling'' # ''Melankoli'' (Melancholy) # ''Springtanz'' (Spring dance, composed 1872?; revised 1888) # ''Elegi'' (Elegy) Book V, Op. 54 (composed 1889–91; published 1891; Nos. 1–4 later orchestrated as '' Lyric Suite''): # ''Gjetergutt'' (Shepherd's boy) # ''Gangar'' (Norwegian march) # ''Trolltog'' (March of the Dwarfs) # ''Notturno'' # ''Scherzo'' # ''Klokkeklang'' (Bell ringing) Book VI, Op. 57 (composed 1890?–3; published 1893): # ''Svundne dager'' (Vanished days) # '' Gade'' # ''Illusjon'' (Illusion) # ''Geheimniss'' (Secret) # ''Sie tanzt'' (She dances) # ''Heimweh'' (Homesickness) Book VII, Op. 62 (composed 1893?–5; published 1895): # ''Sylfide'' (Sylph) # ''Takk'' (Gratitude) # ''Fransk serenade'' (French serenade) # ''Bekken'' (Brooklet) # ''Drømmesyn'' (Phantom) # ''Hjemad'' (Homeward) Book VIII, Op. 65 (composed 1896; published 1897): # ''Fra ungdomsdagene'' (From early years) # ''Bondens sang'' (Peasant's song) # ''Tungsinn'' (Melancholy) # ''Salong'' (Salon) # ''I balladetone'' (Ballad) # '' Bryllupsdag på Troldhaugen'' (''Wedding Day at Troldhaugen'') Book IX, Op. 68 (composed 1898-9; published 1899; Nos. 4 and 5 were orchestrated in 1899): # ''Matrosenes oppsang'' (Sailors' song) # ''Bestemors menuet'' (Grandmother's minuet) # ''For dine føtter'' (At your feet) # ''Aften på højfjellet'' (Evening in the mountains) # ''Bådnlåt'' (At the cradle) # ''Valse mélancolique'' (Melancholy waltz) Book X, Op. 71 (composed and published 1901): # ''Det var engang'' (Once upon a time) # ''Sommeraften'' (Summer's eve) # ''Småtroll'' (Puck) # ''Skogstillhet'' (Peace in the woods) # ''Halling'' # ''Forbi'' (Gone) # ''Efterklang'' (Remembrances)

References

Bibliography

*Grieg, Edvard (2008): ''Thematisch-Bibliographisches Werkverzeichnis'', ed. Dan Fog, Kirsti Grinde and Øyvind Norheim. Frankfurt/Main Leipzig London New York: Henry Litolffs Verlag *Horton, John and Nils Grinde, "Edvard Grieg," ''Grove Music Online'', ed. L. Macy (accessed 25 May 2008) *Krellmann, Hanspeter (2008): ''Griegs lyrische Klavierstücke: Ein musikalischer Werkführer''. München: C.H. Beck

External links

* {{Authority control Compositions by Edvard Grieg Compositions for solo piano

Complete listing

See also

References

Bibliography

External links