String Orchestra Series

Holberg Suite was composed in the Baroque dance-suite style, and consists of five movements, with the “Air and Rigaudon” comprising the fourth and fifth of these. In this arrangement, careful attention has been paid to the original intentions in Grieg’s masterpiece. All dynamics, accents and stylistic markings should be observed in preparing this work, as it will bring out the wonderful subtleties in Grieg’s writing.

ARRANGER’S NOTES:

Grieg’s Holberg Suite was first composed in 1884 for piano. Originally titled From Holberg’s
Time: Suite in the Olden Style, Grieg presented it at a Holberg Festival in Bergen, celebrating the bicentenary of noted Norwegian playwright Ludwig Holberg (1684–1754). The work was
arranged for strings a few months later by the composer. Holberg Suite was composed in the
Baroque dance-suite style of Holberg’s time, and consists of five movements, with the Air and
Rigaudon comprising the fourth and fifth of these. Since Grieg’s transcription in 1885, Holberg Suite has become a beloved standard in the string orchestra repertoire.

In this arrangement, careful attention has been paid to the original intentions in Grieg’s masterpiece. In the Air, the eighth-note accompaniments should be played even and unaccented throughout. In mm. 30 and 34, the theme in the cellos is marked forte and then
fortissimo. Though Grieg himself wrote these dynamics, performers typically underplay them.
It is the position of this arranger that the deep anguish and pathos Grieg was striving for in
this passage are only achieved at these extreme dynamics, and players should be encouraged to play to the sheer edge control. It should be noted that the accompaniment here in the mid and upper strings are marked pianissimo. Achieving these together creates a strikingly austere
effect that is rarely heard in performances and recordings of this work. In the Rigaudon, care
should be taken in mm. 41–75 to create the stark contrasts in Grieg’s dynamic markings.