IMSLP Grieg: 3 Masterpieces by the Legend to Try on the Piano

As renowned William Shakespeare is in England as Edvard Grieg is in Norway. In fact, Grieg is known as the nationalist composer due to gaining inspiration from Norwegian folk music.

As renowned William Shakespeare is in England as Edvard Grieg is in Norway. In fact, Grieg is known as the nationalist composer due to gaining inspiration from Norwegian folk music. The great composer’s works are available in the IMSLP Grieg library of classical music, where music lovers find the best source of creativity by learning from his classical musical compositions. 

In this blog, we will familiarize you with the simplest musical works by Grieg that are worth trying on the piano. Aside from that, you will learn about the 5 best timeless music pieces created by the legend. 

Easiest Pieces by Grieg to Try on the Piano 

Grieg’s music begins at an intermediate level, so you are starting at a basic level, such as learning components of piano notes, you’d better look somewhere else where you can find pieces for basic level students. 

Here, we have provided you with the simplest pieces by the Norwegian composer that you can try on the piano: 

Poetic Tone Pictures, op. 3: 

Poetic Tone Pictures by Edvard Grieg is for an early advanced student. Its 1st, 2nd, and 4th pieces are at an RCM grade 8 level. This collection consists of six pieces. Although it’s not very famous, you can try it. 

Humoresques, op. 6: 

Edvard Grieg composed 4 humoresques. These compositions have characteristics of Norwegian folk music to a large extent, which is like much of Grieg’s other music. 

The 4 humoresques are nearly an RCM Grade 8 level, or an ABRSM grade 6 level. If you are looking for something joyful, choose these humoresques. 

Pictures from Life in the Country, op. 19: 

One more collection that you can find in the RCM syllabus is Pictures from Life in the Country, from Grieg’s op.19. The album can work wonders for you if you are an advanced student, nearly a grade 10 level, and this collection comprises three pieces. 

Masterpieces by Edvard Grieg: 

The Norwegian composer has left so much for music lovers in countless musical compositions. The following is a list of the 5 most famous musical works by the legend available in the IMSLP Grieg virtual library of musical works. 

Lyric Pieces:

Lyric Pieces is a collection that comprises 66 short pieces for solo piano. This collection was published in 10 volumes, from 1867 (OP.12) to 1901 (Op.71). Lyric Pieces incorporates many famous musical pieces by Grieg, such as ‘Wedding Day at Troldhaugen’, ‘To Spring’, ‘Butterfly’, and ‘March of the Trolls’. They all are as popular as Piano Sonata No. 7 by the Russian composer, Sergei Prokofiev, available in the IMSLP Prokofiev digital music library. 

The Norwegian composer considered Lyric Pieces an Intimate slice of his life, and the series can be taken as a musical diary. 

Peer Gynt Suites: 

A Norwegian playwright, Henrik Ibsen, asked Grieg in 1874 to write some incidental music for his play Peer Gynt, who was Norway’s folk hero. The play Peer Gynt was premiered in 1876, and this music is one of the most famous works by Grieg. 

He composed two popular suites, Op. 46 and Op.55, from the music he created for Peer Gynt. Besides that, he also created famous movements that include ‘Morning Mood’ and ‘In the Hall of the Mountain King’. 

Ballade in G Minor: 

Grieg composed The Ballade in G minor, Op.24 between 1875 and 1876. It is a set of 14 variations based on a Norwegian folk tune. The composer was very depressed after the demise of his parents in 1875. Due to this, problems also occurred in his relationship with his wife. According to Grieg, Ballade was written with the blood of his life in days of despair and pain. 

Norwegian Dances: 

The composer composed 4 Norwegian Dances, Op.35, in 1883. These compositions are based on melodies that Grieg found in Ludvig Mathias Lindeman’s folk music collection Mountain Melodies Old and New. 

These compositions were originally crafted as piano duets. However, they are famous in the form of orchestral arrangements by Hans Sitt, who was a Czech conductor. 

Violin Sonata No.3 in C Minor: 

Grieg started the composition of his last violin sonata in 1886. The Violin Sonata No.3 in C Minor, Op.45, is his most famous composition for the violin. It’s the last musical piece composed by the Norwegian legend using traditional sonata form structure. 

The premiere happened in 1887, in which Grieg played the piano, and Adolph Brodsky was the violinist. 

Key Takeaways 

Edvard Grieg is called the nationalist composer in Norway due to his inspiration source from Norwegian folk music.  If you are a piano buff, you can try three of the easiest musical pieces by Grieg on the piano, Poetic Tone Pictures, op. 3, Humoresques, op. 6, and Pictures from Life in the Country, op. 19. These musical works are available in the IMSLP Grieg virtual musical library.