Hardanger Fiddle - Influences

Influences

Edvard Grieg adapted many Hardanger folk tunes into his compositions, and composed tunes for the Hardanger as part of his score for Ibsen's Peer Gynt. The opening phrase of "Morning" from Grieg's Peer Gynt music is derived from the tuning of the sympathetic strings of the Hardanger fiddle: A F♯ E D E F♯ and so on. The main theme from Grieg's piano concerto is said to be inspired by a version of the tune Fanitullen, played by a fiddler from Hallingdal.

In recent years, the instrument has gained recognition in the rest of the world. Japan has been one of the countries that has found an interest in the hardingfele and Japanese musicians travel to Norway just to learn to play this instrument. In 1997, the Australian classical composer Liza Lim wrote the piece Philtre for a solo Hardanger fiddle. Another recent work is "mobius II" for hardanger fiddle and electronics by the British composer Rose Dodd (2011, premiered at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival by Britt Pernille Froholm).

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