Asbjørn Ø. Eriksen – paper 2000

Presented at the Grieg Conference in Bergen May 27, 2000

Asbjørn Ø. Eriksen, Norway
Associate Professor
Music Department – University of Oslo

Boris Asafiev’s book about Grieg (1942) – an original contribution to the literature on the Composer.
The enduring Russian affection for the music of Grieg is well known. He has been one of the most widely loved composers in Russia throughout the 20th century, and several illustrious Russian musicians and orchestras have performed his works. Much attention has been paid to the friendship between Tchaikovsky and Grieg. Many Russian composers at the beginning of the 20th century valued Grieg’s music highly, for instance Ippolitov-Ivanov, Rakhmaninov, Miaskovsky and the young Prokofiev. Grieg also inspired Russian artists outside musical circles. Maxim Gorky is supposed to have counted him his favourite composer, and the Russian symbolist poet Andrei Bely (1880-1934) dedicated a work in rhythmic prose to him, called First Symphony, with the subheading “The Nordic” (1901).

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Asbjørn Ø. Eriksen paper 2000