Introduction
The Holberg Suite op. 40 or, more properly, “From the time of Holberg”, subtitled “Suite in the old style”, is a five-movement suite based on 18th-century dances, composed by Edvard Grieg in 1884, on the occasion of the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of humanist and playwright Ludvig Holberg.
It is an example of 19th-century music containing a recovery of the form and musical style of previous centuries. It can be compared to a not-so-famous piece such as À la Chapelle Sixtine by Franz Liszt (with whom, incidentally, Grieg studied for a period of time in Italy), or something that will be written a little later: the Antiche arie e danze by Ottorino Respighi.
Eilif Peterssen, portrait of Edvard Grieg – 1891
This suite was originally written for piano and transcribed for orchestra after the premiere. The structure consists of a corpus of dances, an homage to Holberg’s time.
After a vigorous Prelude there is a Sarabande in the time of Andante, followed by an elegant Gavotte (which develops internally into a Musette). After this, we find an Aria, rich in the legacy of Bach’s arias, written in the tempo of Andante Religious. The suite ends with the quintessential Provencal dance, the Rigaudon.
Holberg Suite – Analysis
Prelude
Should you need a score you can find one here.
The Prelude – as a form – was historically born as an exclusively instrumental piece, devoid of a codified form and generally placed at the beginning of a staged work. Its purely technical purpose is to “warm up” the instrumentalists, and tell the audience that the show is about to start.
The movement starts with a very rhythmic theme, in an exuberant G major, insisting on a cell that will be the backbone structure of the entire movement
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Sarabande
The Sarabanda is an ancient love dance born in Spain, presumably in the sixteenth century, but in turn, imported from distant Arab and Persian cultures. It is described by the Iberian poet Miguel de Cervantes. His, is one of the very few written testimonies, since in 1583 this dance was banned publicly “for obscenity”. On a rhythmic level, it is built on a regular cycle of three impulses, of which the second is the strongest and is joined to the third, while the first remains single and corresponds to the enthralling step of the dance.
The theme is introduced by the second violins and violas divisi, creating a very warm sound. Notice the rhythm that appears the most in these first few bars: it’s the same rhythm of the repeating cell of the first movement.
Technical tip
Pay attention to where the crescendo and diminuendo markings end up: this determines the amplitude of your gesture and its position. You can use a round gesture (always with a pulse of course) and break the pattern accordingly
For a technical analysis, take a look at this other video
Gavotte
The Gavotte is a dance of French identity, moderate albeit with a goliardic character, and developed on a binary rhythm, that is of two impulses, starting on the second. The etymology of the term is explained by the fact that the Gavotta was born as a folk dance of the alpine mountaineers, called Gavots. Later the dance crosses the border of the Alps and reaches the French courts, where it’s then welcomed within the musical theater and instrumental suites. What distinguishes this form is undoubtedly its playful and at the same time elegant character.
Written in a rondo form, the main structure is A-B-A-C-A plus a ternary D-E-D.
The main idea, or A part, is introduced in pianissimo by the second violins and picked up in forte by everyone else
Air
The Aria intended as a form of dance finds its development in the choral sphere and in the most sacred atmosphere of ancient instrumental music, as it is conceived as a polyphonic piece of accompaniment to a melody that recalls as much as possible the human vocality. The very precise indication with which Grieg, in his interpretation of this dance, specifies the atmosphere is interesting: Andante Religioso.
The atmosphere changes completely. From the light-hearted mood of the previous movements, we are thrown into a somber G minor. The theme is sung by the first violins; the second violins and violas drag the pulsing rhythm in 8th notes while the cellos hold the tonic, and the basses enrich the texture with their pizzicato.
Rigaudon
Rigaudon or Rigodon is the most danceable of any of these dances. It originates in the French and Italian Occitan Alpine valleys and develops in the Provençal area. It consists of regular stanzas repeated cyclically and is danced by many dancers into concentric circles. In Grieg’s work, a brilliant melody is moved back and forth in a duet by two solo instruments, a violin, and a viola, while the rest of the orchestra supports the rhythm of the dance with pizzicatos. At first, the violin solo has the melodic part
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