Friday FIVE: September 4 - Morning Mood

On September 4, 1907, Edvard Grieg died in Bergen, Norway, the same city where he was born. 119 years later, his music is still among the most recognized in the classical repertoire. In this episode, I reflect on two pieces from his Peer Gynt suite that could not be more different. In the Hall of the Mountain King, which Grieg himself reportedly thought was too crude, and Morning Mood, which reveals the quieter and more luminous side of a composer who spent his whole career writing music that sounded like Norway. Same composer. Same suite. Remarkable range.

The Friday FIVE is a weekly five-minute podcast series from Musically Speaking that features five minutes of music commentary, examples, and recommendations from Jarrod Richey.

Here’s a link to a recording of In the Hall of the Mountain King: https://youtu.be/awRj_KdSVvY

Here is a recording of Grieg’s Morning Mood: https://youtu.be/J-1Bob1dU18