''Two Elegiac Melodies'', Op. 34, is a composition in two movements for
string orchestra
A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first ...
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 ...
, completed in 1880 and first published in 1881.
Background
The two movements are instrumental arrangements Grieg made of two of his ''12 Melodies'', Op. 33, published in 1880: these were settings for voice and piano of words by the Norwegian poet and journalist
Aasmund Olavsson Vinje
Aasmund Olavsson Vinje (6 April 1818 – 30 July 1870) was a Norwegian poet and journalist who is remembered for poetry, travel writing, and his pioneering use of Landsmål (now known as Nynorsk).
Background
Vinje was born into a poor but we ...
.
[Grieg – Two Elegiac Melodies for string orchestra, Op. 34]
Utah Symphony, accessed 7 April 2017.[Edvard Grieg – Elegiac Melodies (2) for orchestra (or piano), Op. 34]
Allmusic, accessed 7 April 2017.
''Two Elegiac Melodies'' was dedicated to
Heinrich von Herzogenberg
Heinrich Picot de Peccaduc, Freiherr von Herzogenberg (10 June 1843 – 9 October 1900) was an Austrian composer and conductor descended from a French aristocratic family.
He was born in Graz and was educated at a Jesuit school in Feldkirch, ...
.
[The dedication is shown on the cover of the score.] Grieg also made an arrangement for solo piano.
[
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Description
It is scored for 1st violins (sometimes in two parts), 2nd violins (in two parts), violas (in two parts), cellos and double basses. The many parts allow for a thick texture
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when required.
"The Wounded Heart"
Norwegian: ''Hjertesår''. German: ''Herzwunden''.
Vinje's words, from Grieg's Op. 33 No. 3, relate that wounds have been suffered by the heart in the struggles of life, but it has survived; faith is not destroyed.[
The music is in C minor. There are three verses: in verse 1 the melody is played by the first violins; in verse 2 by the cellos, with an insistent quaver accompaniment from all other parts, contrasting with the other verses; and in verse 3 by the first violins, the orchestration being similar to the first verse, but heavier.
The beginning of the melody of "The Wounded Heart", played by the 1st violins
]
"The Last Spring"
Norwegian: ''Våren''. German: ''Letzter Frühling''.
In Vinje's words, from Grieg's Op. 33 No. 2, the poet describes the beauty of the countryside in spring, appearing after the snow of winter; he thinks he might be seeing it for the last time.[Grieg: The Last Spring, Op. 34 No. 2]
San Francisco Symphony, accessed 7 April 2017.
The music is in G major. There are two verses: in both the melody is played by the first violins. The orchestration of the second verse is more developed, starting with the violins, in four parts, in high register
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; the rest of the strings gradually join in during the verse, until a thick texture is heard from the full string orchestra towards the end.
The beginning of the melody of "The Last Spring", played by the 1st violins
References
External links
2 Elegiac Melodies, Op.34 (Grieg, Edvard)
at IMSLP
The International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP), also known as the Petrucci Music Library after publisher Ottaviano Petrucci, is a subscription-based digital library of public-domain music scores. The project, which uses MediaWiki software ...
{{Edvard Grieg
Compositions by Edvard Grieg
1881 compositions
Compositions for string orchestra