Eivind Groven facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Eivind Groven
Groven in 1951.
Background information
Born	(1901-10-08)8 October 1901 Eidsborg, Lårdal, Norway
Origin	Norway
Died	8 February 1977(1977-02-08) (aged 75) Oslo, Norway
Genres	Classical, traditional folk music
Occupation(s)	Musician, composer
Instruments	Hardingfele

Eivind Groven (born October 8, 1901 – died February 8, 1977) was a famous Norwegian composer and music expert. He grew up in the Vest-Telemark region of Norway, which is known for its traditional folk music. This background greatly influenced his own music.

Eivind Groven's Life Story

Eivind Groven was born in the village of Lårdal in Telemark, Norway. His childhood was full of traditional music. He came from a family of talented musicians and artists. His father and two uncles played the hardanger fiddle, a special Norwegian violin. His mother and her sisters were also talented folk singers.

Eivind was the youngest of five brothers. Two of his brothers played the fiddle, and Eivind soon joined them. They learned to read music and sometimes played classical songs. But mostly, they played local folk music. As Eivind grew up, he started writing down the tunes he heard from other fiddlers. This helped him learn a lot about folk music.

When he was 16, Eivind became very sick with a lung infection. He barely survived. While he was recovering, he studied music and played the fiddle. He later said, "I was free to do whatever I wished in that time."

Studying Music and Composing

Groven first studied to become a teacher in Notodden, but he soon decided to focus on music. In 1925, he began studying music theory and composition at the Oslo Conservatory of Music. He especially admired the composer Beethoven and wanted his 9th symphony played at his funeral.

Unlike many young Norwegian composers, Groven chose to stay in Norway. He wanted to create his own unique musical style. He combined the classical sonata form with the special changing patterns found in the dance music from Telemark. This style was similar to music from the late Baroque period.

Working with Folk Music on the Radio

In 1931, Groven started working for the Norwegian Broadcasting Company, NRK. His job was to broadcast half an hour of folk music every week. This allowed many rural musicians to be heard on the radio. It helped save folk music for future generations.

However, many people in the cities, especially in Oslo, did not like this music. They called it "barbaric." Groven quietly burned the hate mail he received. But he had strong support from his family and the people in his home region.

Special Organ and World War II

From 1938, Groven began working on a special project called "just intonation." This led to him building a unique organ, which he finished in 1952. The famous musician Albert Schweitzer wanted to try this organ. When Schweitzer won the Nobel Peace Prize, he visited Groven and played the organ. He said a great organ like this needed to be built.

During World War II, Groven left his job at NRK. This happened after a brief and unwanted meeting with Joseph Goebbels in his studio. After the war, Groven helped edit and publish seven books of Hardanger fiddle tunes. He worked on this project with other folk musicians.

Groven was also related to the author Ingeborg Refling Hagen. He wrote music for her poems and stories. He continued composing and became well-known for his unique musical style and how he used the orchestra.

Groven's Musical Style

Groven's music was greatly shaped by his folk music background. The "blue notes" often heard in folk music were used in his classical orchestra pieces. His harmonies often sounded like the hardanger fiddle, which can play on two or three strings at once. He also used sounds from the Norwegian cither (a stringed instrument) and the willow flute.

Some experts have said that Groven's harmonies are similar to those of early Renaissance composers. He often used a special type of chord called a "sixth-chord." Groven also thought in a "polyphonic" way, meaning he used many independent melodies at once. This came from the hardanger fiddle and his love for Bach.

At first, some critics thought his music had no clear key (called "atonality"). But Groven's music was actually very tonal. He could make big changes in key, but they always made sense in his music. He also used old musical modes found in traditional Norwegian music. It's interesting that he found similarities with other composers like Igor Stravinsky, even though he hadn't heard much of their music. This shows how his deep understanding of folk music led him to similar musical ideas.

Groven's music often changed and grew in an organic way. He would gradually turn one musical idea into another. He believed that "all music is about something." So, most of his works were based on books, poems, or plays. He wrote many songs for poems by Henrik Wergeland. He also wrote music for choirs based on texts by Hans E. Kinck and Ingeborg Refling Hagen. Even his piano concerto and two symphonies were inspired by these authors.

Groven also composed music for the hardanger fiddle. He experimented with new ways to tune the instrument. He arranged many folk tunes for his special organ, using unique scales and intervals that a regular piano could not play. He also wrote essays about pure tuning and his invention, the "pure-tuning automath."

Eivind Groven's Family Life

In 1925, Groven married Ragna Hagen (1902–1960). They had four children: Aslaug, Tone, Dagne, and Gudmund. His older brother Olav, who was also a talented folk musician, died in 1928.

After his first wife Ragna passed away in 1960, Groven married Signe Taraldlien in 1962. She outlived him by twenty years.

In 1964, Groven developed Parkinson's disease. This made it hard for him to play the fiddle. The medicines at the time caused problems for his heart. He died in Oslo in 1977 at the age of 75. He is buried next to his first wife at Tangen Church in Hedmark.

Selected Compositions

Instrumental Music

Orchestra

• Symphony No. 1, Op. 26: Innover viddene. 1938, 51.
• Symphony No. 2, Op. 34: Midnattstimen. 1946.
• Piano concerto, Op. 39a (1950)
• Fjelltonar, Op. 27 (Stutarlåt, Vinjesong, Siklebekken). 1938.
• Hjalarljod, Op, 38. 1950.
• Symfoniske slåttar No. 1, Op. 43. 1956.
• Faldafeykir No. 2, Op. 53. 1965.

Chamber Music

• Solstemning for flute and piano. 1956.

Solo

• Capriccio for flute, Op. 24c. 1956.
• Solstemning for piano, Op. 37. 1948.

Songs

• Anden Aurikelsang, Op. 7. 1926.
• Å så rødblond, Op. 9. 1926.
• Men en kveld, Op. 12. 1929.
• Songs, Op. 13 (På hospitalet om natten, Anden nat på hospitalet, Moderens korstegn). 1930.
• Sommerfuglen, Op. 14. 1930.
• Songs, Op. 22 (Til min Gyldenlak, Serenade fra Venetianerne). 1934.

Chorus

• Paa hospitalet om natten for mixed chorus. 1952.
• På Heksmo for male chorus. 1931.
• Stenen i Stefanens pande for mixed chorus. 1932.
• Salme for male chorus. 1938?
• Hellige tone for female chorus. 1930s.
• Om kvelden for mixed chorus. chorus. 1930s.
• Fantegutten for mixed chorus. early 1930s.
• Den tyngste sorg og møda for mixed chorus. 1946.
• Hugen for mixed chorus. 1946.
• Guro rid til ottesong for mixed chorus. 1955.
• Barnets aasyn for mixed chorus. 1959.
• Bukkevisa for mixed chorus. 1950s.
• Olav Liljukrans for mixed chorus. 1960.
• Margjit Hjukse, Op. 48, for mixed chorus. 1964.
• Til Telemork for mixed chorus. 1963–64.

Chorus, Soli and Orchestra

• Brudgommen, Op. 16. 1933.
• Mot ballade, Op. 20. 1933.
• Draumkvædet, Op. 51. 1963.

See also

• Stev, a form of Norwegian folk song