Grieg: Violin Sonata No. 2 in G, Op. 13
The second of Edvard Grieg’s three violin sonatas was written in about three blissful weeks in the summer of 1867 shortly after his marriage to Nina Hagerup. A musical snapshot of the happy newlyweds, the sonata had its premiere in the fall of the same year in Oslo with Grieg performing its piano part alongside violinist Gudbrand Bøhn.
Dedicated to fellow Norwegian composer Johan Svendsen, the sonata was a loving salute to his mentor and champion Ole Bull. A violinist and composer whose virtuosity was on par with Niccolo Pagaini, Bull was one of Norway’s first composers to incorporate folk music elements into his works and paved the way for Grieg and others to tap into and boldly proclaim their native voices. Of Grieg’s three violin sonatas, the second is the most nationalistic in flavor.
Grieg balanced style and substance in this carefully crafted work that melds classic sonata structure with folk music cheeriness. The first movement is a textbook sonata form consisting of an introduction, a three-theme exposition, development, recapitulation, and coda; the unrelenting spirit of the dance (in particular, the Norwegian “springar” jumping dance) that permeates said themes is what made the work so jolly and distinctive.
The comparatively subdued ABA-form second movement in E minor is followed by a sonata-rondo third movement that rivals the opening movement in its ability to merrily infuse folk dance elements into an established musical structure. It’s no wonder this piece, a sort of musical honeymoon memento, was a favorite of Grieg’s that he was eager to perform numerous times during his career.
Grieg: Andante con moto in C Minor, EG 116
Grieg’s Andante con moto from June 1878 for violin, cello, and piano may have been his attempt to build additional chamber music-writing renown following the success of his String Quartet in G Minor, Op. 27. Notes in the piece’s manuscript suggested that the Andante con moto was still in draft form and was to be one movement of a multi-movement piano trio. The Andante con moto remained unfinished and unpublished during Grieg’s lifetime and was discovered shortly after his death in 1907 by his dear friend and colleague Julius Röntgen while combing through Grieg’s musical estate. The work was first performed in 1908 at a Grieg memorial concert with Röntgen on the piano and didn’t have its first printing until 1978, 100 years after it was written!
In the way music lovers praise the totality and fulfillment of Franz Schubert’s two-movement Symphony No. 8 in spite of its outwardly “unfinished” appearance, Röntgen similarly lauded the merits of Grieg’s one-movement trio. In a letter to Grieg’s widow Nina, Röntgen said, “…The piece can stand on its own without conveying the impression that it is a fragment, forming as it does a perfect whole.” Part sonata form, part rhapsody, the Andante con moto is a unique opportunity for listeners to revel in Grieg’s ability to put a theme through its compositional paces: Grieg deployed skillful changes in harmony, texture, rhythm, color, and key areas that allowed one brief, melancholy melody to become a fully realized, stand-alone statement. As stated by Röntgen, the piece, “…revels in its sole theme, which even in major retains its mood of lamentation, only to expand so magnificently to full strength.”
Grieg: Cello Sonata in A minor, Op. 36
Composed in Bergen from 1882-1883 and dedicated to his brother John, an accomplished cellist, Grieg’s Cello Sonata in A minor had two illustrious premieres in Germany in October 1883. Covering the piano part both times, Grieg performed his sonata in Dresden with Friedrich Grützmacher on the 22nd and with Julius Klengel in Leipzig on the 27th. The sonata was played often in Grieg’s lifetime, including a performance by the Grieg brothers in Oslo in 1885 and a noteworthy presentation with [Edvard] Grieg collaborating with up-and-coming cello virtuoso Pablo Casals in Amsterdam in 1906.
Listeners familiar with Grieg’s music may find the source material of this sonata strikingly familiar. The opening movement’s first theme stemmed from Grieg’s Funeral March in Memory of Rikard Nordraak and the theme of the second movement was a nearly identical retelling of the “Homage March” from Sigurd Jorsalfar. The reason behind the apparent musical recycling is unclear and some scholars are eager to, on pure speculation, attribute the self-plagiarism to personal details that occurred in Grieg’s life around the time of the sonata’s gestation. While serving as the conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic from 1880-1882, the demands of the position, combined with a prolonged illness and struggles in his marriage, may have infringed on time he would have normally devoted to developing his compositional abilities and thus prompted him to reuse reliable melodies to pen a successful work.
Regardless of its external influences, the sonata is an idiomatic and satisfying work for both the cello and piano. Listeners familiar with Grieg’s music may also observe that the piece is in A minor, the same key of his ubiquitous Piano Concerto, Op. 16, and say to themselves, “I wonder if this piece sounds like Grieg’s Piano Concerto.” The short answer is an enthusiastic “Yes!” The sonata not only shares the same home key of the concerto, but mirrors its dramatic arc, from fiery beginning to heroic conclusion.
An agitated sonata-form first movement is followed by an equally tranquil second movement in F Major. The concluding third movement is a nimble troll dance under the guise of a sonata form, yet another successful instance of Grieg infusing folksy Norwegian charm into a work of high art.