Grieg: Peer Gynt

Classical and folk have always gone hand in hand, and never more so than in the music of Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg, whose Lyric Pieces for solo piano, Piano Concerto and incidental music to Ibsen’s play Peer Gynt owe their very existence to the lilting, dancing and melancholy of traditional Norwegian folk. This remarkable album digs deep into the orchestral score of Peer Gynt to explore these folk roots, in a thrilling new arrangement for the nine-string, rustic Hardanger fiddle, violin and string orchestra. Fiddle player Ragnhild Hemsing brings an improvised freshness to “Morning” and “Death of Åse”, with folk inflections and ornamentation adding a vivid atmosphere. The Trondheim Soloists have this music coursing through their veins, and bring a richness and vitality, especially to “Peer Gynt’s Homecoming”. “In the Hall of the Mountain King” provides an exhilarating folk finale.