Edvard Grieg (1843-1907), Norway’s greatest composer of the 19th century, isparticularly known as a lyrical composer of songs and piano miniatures. The great
majority of his piano works are short character pieces influenced by the Romantic
tradition (mostly in three-part form), with a large part of them especially
characterized by the use of Norwegian folk and folk-like melodies, harmonies, and
rhythms. Grieg’s larger works employing the piano (solo or chamber music) and
exploring the sonata form include his Piano Sonata in E Minor, Op.7, a number of
chamber music compositions (three Sonatas for Violin and Piano and one Sonata for
Cello and Piano), and the most familiar Piano Concerto in A Minor,
Op.16. Moreover, his larger-scale piano works include two important essays in the
variation form: the Ballade in the Form of Variations on a Norwegian Melody, Op.24,
for piano, and the Old Norwegian Melody (Romance) with Variations, Op.51, for two
pianos. The Ballade, op.24 is relatively unknown outside Norway (although among
Grieg’s most significant solo piano works), while the Old Norwegian Melody, Op.51
is a work that most pianists are not familiar with.
This document examines Grieg’s approach to variation form as illustrated in
his keyboard compositions, Ballade, Op.24 and Old Norwegian Melody with
Variations, Op.51.
Chapter 1 provides a brief introduction to the formal structures used by Grieg
in his original keyboard and chamber-music compositions, concentrating on the
variation form and aspects of this form that must have attracted Grieg’s interest. The
chapter introduces the two works discussed in the document and concludes with
addressing the topic of this document: Grieg’s treatment of the variation procedure
(theme and its subsequent variations) in his two keyboard variation sets, both based
on Norwegian folk tunes.
Chapters 2 and 3 present the historical background and an analytical overview
of the Ballade, Op.24 and Old Norwegian Melody, Op.51, discussing structure,
harmonic and melodic patterns, keys, texture, rhythm, and tempo. The goal of the
analysis is to illustrate Grieg’s variation techniques and to provide a practical,
analytical guide as a tool for an informed interpretation.
The final chapter, Chapter 4, discusses the large-scale organization of the two
works addressing the similarities between the two compositions, particularly in terms
of the theme’s treatment and the overall climactic progression of the variations. The
chapter concludes with observations about Grieg’s treatment of the variation form in
the context of the piano ballade tradition and its association with narrative and poetic
elements, including a comparison with other nineteenth-century piano variation sets.