Edvard Grieg’s presence in Bergen, Norway, is as ubiquitous as Mozart’s in Salzburg. He was born and died there, spent two years as the conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic, and the city’s music academy and concert hall are named in his honor. It’s no wonder, then, that the Bergen Philharmonic plays his music with such authenticity and authority.
Although Grieg wrote more than 90 minutes of incidental music for Henrik Ibsen’s play Peer Gynt, little beyond the eight movements that comprise the oft-performed Peer Gynt Suites is familiar to modern audiences. All 26 movements of Grieg’s original 1875 score are not performed on this Chandos release, but Edward Gardner includes enough of them to give contour to Ibsen’s picaresque tale. Peer Gynt’s misadventures take him from the highlands of Norway to the deserts of Morocco, and Gardner is especially attentive to the changes in scenery, navigating the propulsive rhythms of the opening prelude “At the Wedding,” as deftly as he does their sultry, slipshod counterparts in “Anitra’s Dance.” Adding to the exoticism are several selections for the Hardanger fiddle, an eight-stringed folk instrument unique to the Bergen region, played with twangy verve by Håkon Høgemo. Pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet rounds out the record with a vigorous reading of Grieg’s Piano Concerto, shading its flinty, self-serious motives with sparkle and wit. Available at Arkivmusic.
