Norwegian March

• When was Norwegian March written?

  1891
• What influenced Grieg during the composition of Norwegian March?

  Nationalistic features
• What folk style elements are evident in Norwegian March?

  • Sustained drones and open fifths in bass
  • Lightly dancing melodic rhythms
  • Narrow melodic shapes with falling 3rd
  • Melodic ornaments
  • Largely diatonic harmonic style
• How is the sense of march conveyed in Norwegian March?

  • Unrelenting two beat metre
  • Every beat sounded in accompaniment
  • Frequent repetition of two-bar phrases
  • Long sequences of short phrases with dynamics
  • Unrefined four-square style
• What is the dynamic marking at the start of Norwegian March?

  Bold ffp
• How does the melody interact with the bass in the opening of Norwegian March?

  The melody dances above a homophonic texture
• What harmonic progression is established at the start of Norwegian March?

  V7 - I progression
• What is unique about Grieg's harmonisation in the piece?

  It starts with an unprepared 7th on chord IV
• In which keys are the first five bars and the last three bars of the piece?

  C major and G major
• What are the three distinct elements of the folk-style melody?

  1. Initial rising three-note scale
  2. Falling and rising 3rd
  3. Grieg’s fingerprint motif
• How does motif y change in the melody?

  It removes the central quaver for syncopation
• What pitch is notably absent in the melody of Norwegian March?

  F (the 4th)
• What happens to the melody in the second section of Norwegian March?

  • Changes to the highest register
  • Motif z falls by step
  • Dominant pedal is introduced
• What dynamic marking is used when motif z is restored at bar 45?

  fff dynamic
• How does the musical effect change as the passage descends?

  It becomes brutal and ferocious
• What are the key differences in the music at bar 80 compared to the opening?

  • Played an octave lower
  • Dynamic marking is p tranquillo
  • Two closed phrases ending on tonic
  • No modulation to the dominant
• What is the final section of Norwegian March built on?

  A tonic pedal
• How does motif x appear in the final bars of Norwegian March?

  In inverted and augmented form
• What is the overall structure of Norwegian March?

  • Introduction
  • Development of motifs
  • Recapitulation of themes
  • Coda with tonic pedal