Ave maris stella by Edvard Grieg

It is one of the joys of being on the music repertoire committee for St Francis' Choir that occasionally you are successful in one or more of your suggestions as to music which the Choir should perform. For the current six-month program I have been fortunate in having two suggestions of music by Norwegian composers accepted - "Cry Out and Shout" by Knut Nystedt and Edvard Grieg's glorious gem "Ave maris stella". This letter work has just been performed by the Choir for the first time and received ringing endorsement from both Choir members and members of the congregation.

The tranquil nature of the motet reminded me of the photographs that I had taken of the beautiful lake next to Grieg's home Troldhaugen during a visit to Bergen in June 2004.

After catching a bus to the suburbs of Bergen, it is only a short walk to the Troldhaugen precinct. I remember walking through the front gate and being serenaded by a beautiful young Norwegian girl dressed in a traditional bunad playing a violin (and presumably some of Greig's music). After a short walk down a path in dappled sunlight through a grove of stunningly green birch and beech trees, one first comes to the visitor centre (where the small Troldsalen concert hall is housed) and then it is only a little further to Grieg's house and composer's hut (both overlooking the water) and it is also possible to walk down to the edge of the lake and look up at the tomb which is the final resting place of both Edvard and his wife Nina. I enjoyed sitting in the garden for a time and just looking out over the lake (I seem to recall this may have been interrupted at one point by the predictable Bergen rain!).

It is a beautiful, calm and tranquil place and well worth a visit. Certain areas of the house are open to visitors and you can also look into the composer's hut.

Troldhaugen

The Composer's Hut

Lake Nordås 

The Tomb of Edvard and Nina Grieg