EDVARD GRIEG Funeral March in Memory of Rikard Nordraak
“ I am sure my music has a taste of codfish in it .” – Grieg
ABOUT THE COMPOSER
Born 1843 in Bergen , Norway ; died 1907 , Bergen , Norway
• Edvard Grieg grew up in a musical family in Norway and attended the Leipzig Conservatory ( founded by Mendelssohn , whose music we heard earlier in this program ).
• Grieg suffered from poor health throughout his lifetime and was constantly in and out of treatments .
• His use of hometown influences brought acclaim to Norwegian music and helped establish a national musical identity . Grieg is to this day an adored figure in Norway , where many statues and buildings are named after the late composer .
THE WORLD AT A GLANCE
1866
MUSIC Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Symphony No . 1
FUN FACT
Greig stood up for his values throughout his life . In 1899 , he cancelled his concerts in France after a spout of anti-Semitic actions by the government and became the target of French hate mail .
TECHNOLOGY Dynamite is invented
ABOUT THE PIECE
• Grieg composed this powerful and evocative work in honor of Rikard Nordraak , who passed in 1866 at the age of 23 . Nordraak was a fellow Norwegian composer who wrote the country ’ s national anthem .
ART Claude Monet ’ s Camille
HISTORY The Austro-Prussian War
10 BALTIMORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA