Eyvind Alnæs (29 April 1872 – 24 December 1932) was a Norwegian

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

and choir director.

Personal life

Alnæs was born in

Fredrikstad Fredrikstad (; previously ''Frederiksstad''; literally "Fredrik's Town") is a List of cities in Norway, city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Østfold Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipal ...

, as the son of headmaster Johannes Jørgen Lauritz Alnæs (1835–1916) and Elise Martine Hansen (1851–1931). He married Emilie Thorne (1882–1976) in 1903. He was the father of author Lise Børsum, and grandfather of novelist Finn Alnæs and artist Bente Børsum.

Career

In 1888 he was enrolled at the Music and Organist School in Oslo (''Musikkonservatoriet i Oslo''). Alnæs studied piano with Westye Waaler, organ with Peter Brynie Lindeman as well as harmony, counterpoint and composition with Iver Holter. In April 1892, after Alnæs had finished his studies in Oslo, he studied in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

with

Carl Reinecke Carl Heinrich Carsten Reinecke (23 June 182410 March 1910) was a German composer, conductor, and pianist in the mid-Romantic era. Biography Reinecke was born in what is today the Hamburg district of Altona; technically he was born a Dane, as u ...

and, after the première of his first symphony in 1896, in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

with Julius Ruthardt. For many years he played the organ in several churches and conducted

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

s. During the years 1895-1907 he was organist at Bragernes Church in

Drammen Drammen () is a city and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and villages such ...

. From 1907-16 he was at

Uranienborg Church Uranienborg church is a parish church in Oslo, Norway. The church is situated in the neighborhood of Uranienborg, next to Uranienborg Park behind the Royal Palace. Both the church and Uranienborg school just below were constructed in 1886. The ...

in Oslo and between 1916-32 at

Oslo Cathedral Oslo Cathedral () — formerly Our Savior's Church () — is the main church for the Church of Norway Diocese of Oslo, as well as the parish church for downtown Oslo. The present building dates from 1694 to 1697. The Norwegian royal family and th ...

. He helped found the Norwegian Composers' Union (''Norsk Komponistforening'') in 1917 and served as chairman from 1921-23. Alnæs wrote music in a late Romantic style; his output included two

symphonies A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning c ...

, one set of symphonic

variations Variation or Variations may refer to: Science and mathematics * Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon * Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individual ...

, a

piano concerto A piano concerto, a type of concerto, is a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for piano accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuosic showpieces which require an advance ...

, pieces for

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

, chorale preludes for organ, choral works, and

art songs An art song is a Western vocal music composition, usually written for one voice with piano accompaniment, and usually in the classical art music tradition. By extension, the term "art song" is used to refer to the collective genre of such song ...

(in Norwegian, ''romanser''). Alnæs received the

King's Medal of Merit The King's Medal of Merit (Norwegian: ''Kongens fortjenstmedalje'') is a Norwegian award. It was instituted in 1908 to reward meritorious achievements in the fields of art, science, business, and public service. It is divided in two classes: gold ...

(''Kongens fortjenstmedalje'') in gold in 1922, and in 1932 was appointed a Knight 1st Class in the

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav. Just be ...

. He died in 1932 and was buried at

Vestre gravlund Vestre Gravlund is a cemetery in the Frogner borough of Oslo, Norway. It is located next to the Borgen (station), Borgen metro station. At , it is the largest cemetery in Norway. It was inaugurated in September 1902 and also contains a cremator ...

cemetery in the

Frogner Frogner is a residential and retail borough in the East End and West End of Oslo, West End of Oslo, Norway, with a population of 59,269 as of 2020. In addition to the original Frogner, the borough incorporates Bygdøy, Uranienborg, Norway, Urani ...

borough of

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

Discography

A number of songs by Alnæs have been recorded by the likes of Kirsten Flagstad and

Feodor Chaliapin Feodor Ivanovich Chaliapin ( rus, Фёдор Ива́нович Шаля́пин, Fyodor Ivanovich Shalyapin, ˈfʲɵdər ɨˈvanəvʲɪtɕ ʂɐˈlʲapʲɪn}; 12 April 1938) was a Russian opera singer. Possessing a deep and expressive bass voic ...

. In 2007 the first recording of Alnæs's Piano Concerto in D major, Op. 27 (published c. 1919) was released; it featured Piers Lane as the piano soloist and the

Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra ( Norwegian: Bergen filharmoniske orkester) is a Norwegian orchestra based in Bergen. Its principal concert venue is the Grieg Hall. History Established in 1765 under the name ''Det Musicalske Selskab'' (The M ...

conducted by

Andrew Litton Andrew Litton (born May 16, 1959, New York City) is an American orchestral conductor. Litton is a graduate of The Fieldston School. Biography He studied piano with Nadia Reisenberg and conducting with Sixten Ehrling at the Juilliard Schoo ...

. In early 2010 the premiere recording of his two symphonies - no.1 in C minor, Op.7 and no.2 in D major, Op.43 - was released, with the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Terje Mikkelsen.

References

External links

*
Brief biography from Norwegian Melodies
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Alnaes, Eyvind 1872 births 1932 deaths 19th-century Norwegian classical composers 19th-century conductors (music) 19th-century Norwegian organists 20th-century Norwegian classical composers 20th-century Norwegian conductors (music) 20th-century Norwegian male musicians 20th-century Norwegian organists Burials at Vestre gravlund Norwegian male conductors (music) Norwegian male classical organists Norwegian classical organists Norwegian classical pianists Norwegian male classical composers Norwegian Romantic composers Oslo Conservatory of Music alumni Musicians from Fredrikstad Recipients of the King's Medal of Merit Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal