Presented at the Grieg Conference in Bergen May 30, 2007
Ohran Noh, Canada
Master of Arts student in Musicology
Department of Music, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon
Edvard Grieg’s Influence on American Music:
The Case of the Piano Concertos in A-Minor from the Pen of Edvard Grieg and Edward MacDowell
In his book entitled Grieg and His Music, Henry T. Finck prefaces his deliberation with a poignant dedication to Edward MacDowell, “America’s most original composer […] who was more influenced by Edvard Grieg than by any other master and whose last intellectual pleasure was the reading of the story of Grieg’s life in the first edition of this book.” Regarding the geographical distance between Norway and the United States of America, the close artistic friendship between Edvard Grieg (1843-1907) and Edward MacDowell (1860-1908) seems curious and unlikely, especially considering that the two composers never met in person even once in their lives, making their unique relationship both musically and personally valuable to examine. Similarly, both composers achieved their peak fame during their lifetimes and are recognised as the most representative composers of their respective countries even today. Having common Scottish ancestral roots, Grieg and MacDowell were mutual admirers of each other with evidence that can be traced through their active correspondence.
Download the whole paper here
Ohran Noh – paper 2007