Paul Ludvig Irgens-Jensen (13 April 1894 – 11 April 1969) was a Norwegian twentieth-century

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 ...

Biography

Irgens-Jensen studied

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 ...

with

Nils Larsen Nils Larsen (19 June 1900 – 29 September 1976) was a Norwegian sea captain. Larsen is perhaps most associated with the Norvegia expeditions of Antarctica. Larsen was born in Sandar, and became a noted whaler, captaining a number of whalin ...

while a

philology Philology () is the study of language in Oral tradition, oral and writing, written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also de ...

student at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo (; ) is a public university, public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation#Europe, oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick Univ ...

. He began composing in 1920 and the radical nature of his work attracted some interest. In 1928, Irgens-Jensen submitted his ''

Passacaglia The passacaglia (; ) is a musical form that originated in early seventeenth-century Spain and is still used today by composers. It is usually of a serious character and is typically based on a bass- ostinato and written in triple metre. Origin Th ...

for Orchestra'' to the International

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

Competition to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Franz Schubert's death. The competition was eventually won by Kurt Atterberg's Symphony No. 6. Although Irgens-Jensen's work only received second prize in the Scandinavian Composers Division, the work was performed all over the world and helped Irgens-Jensen gain international fame. In 1930, the composer achieved another great success with his choral symphonic work ''Heimferd'', written to commemorate the 900th anniversary of the death of St.

Olav II of Norway Saint Olaf ( – 29 July 1030), also called Olaf the Holy, Olaf II, Olaf Haraldsson, and Olaf the Stout or "Large", was List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he w ...

. This work won first prize in a composition competition and quickly became popular in Norway. ''Heimferd'' is now considered an important landmark in the history of Norwegian choral music. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Irgens-Jensen composed several songs and orchestral works to

patriotic Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and a sense of attachment to one's country or state. This attachment can be a combination of different feelings for things such as the language of one's homeland, and its ethnic, cultural, politic ...

texts; due to the restrictions imposed by the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

s, these works had to be distributed anonymously and illegally. In 1945 Irgens-Jensen received a government grant that guaranteed him financial independence. In 1969 he died two days before his 75th birthday during a stay in

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

Musical Language

Ludvig Irgens-Jensen was an educated man who traveled and spoke multiple languages. He was aware of the latest European music trends. Initially, he was heavily influenced by French

Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

and experimented with

atonality Atonality in its broadest sense is music that lacks a tonal center, or key. ''Atonality'', in this sense, usually describes compositions written from about the early 20th-century to the present day, where a hierarchy of harmonies focusing on ...

in his early songs. Later, he adopted a tonally based style in the tradition of German late Romanticism. His music was perceived as "old Norwegian" in his homeland due to its

polyphonic Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice ( monophony) or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords ...

writing and preference for modal turns in their harmony. However, he rarely used elements from actual Norwegian folk music. His music was also characterized by wide-ranging, vocal melodic arcs and clear, lightened

instrumentation Instrumentation is a collective term for measuring instruments, used for indicating, measuring, and recording physical quantities. It is also a field of study about the art and science about making measurement instruments, involving the related ...

. Irgens-Jensen is one of the most important Norwegian composers of the interwar period. He had a strong influence on the younger generation, especially as a mediator of Central European musical culture. However, he resisted the post-war musical avant-garde, which caused his work to become outdated and forgotten. Since the 1970s, his works have been performed more often. His

song cycle A song cycle () is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in sequence, as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rarely a combinat ...

''Japanischer Frühling'' (Japanese Spring) is regularly programmed in Scandinavia.

Works

Stage music

*''Driftekaren'', Opera (1938) *''Le Retour'', Opera (1947) *''Kong Baldevins Armring'', Comic opera (1935) *''Robin Hood: spectacle lyrique'', Incidental music (1945)

Choral music

*''Cantates profanes'', Oratorio (before 1930) *''Le Retour'', Oratorio (1930) *''Heimferd'', Oratorio (1930) *''Der Gott und die Bajadere'', Oratorio (1932)

Orchestral Music

*''Tema con variazioni'' (1925) *''Passacaglia'' (1927) *Symphony No. 1 (1930) *''Kong Baldvines Arming'', Suite (1935) *''Partita Sinfonica'' (1938) *''Pastorale religioso'' (1939) *Symphony No. 2 in D minor (1942) *''Canto d'omaggio'' (1950) *''Japanischer Frühling'' (1957) *''Air'' (1959)

Chamber music

*''Violin Sonata in B-flat'' (1923) *''Piano Quintet'' (1927)

Discography (selected releases)

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an English orchestra, founded in 1893 and originally based in Bournemouth. With a remit to serve the South and South West of England, the BSO is administratively based in the adjacent town of Poole, s ...

, ''Symphony in d minor; Air; Passacaglia'' (2011) *

Solveig Kringlebotn Solveig Kringlebotn () (4 June 1963), better known outside Norway as Solveig Kringelborn, is an internationally known Norwegian operatic soprano.Listen to Norway v1-3 Norsk musikkinformasjon – 1993 "Two of these are CD recordings featuring tw ...

, ''To a Friend'' (2003) *

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 ...

, Ragnhild Heiland Sørensen,

Eivind Aadland Eivind Aadland (born 19 September 1956) is a Norwegian conductor and violinist. He has been concert master of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. Since 2020 he has been Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra Aad ...

, ''Japanischer Frühling'' (2002) *

Trondheim Symphony Orchestra The Trondheim Symphony Orchestra & Opera ( Norwegian: ''Trondheim Symfoniorkester & Opera'') is a Norwegian orchestra based in Trondheim, Norway. Its principal concert venue is the Olavshallen. The orchestra is organised as a trust and receives ...

, ''Heimferd'' (1994) *

Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra The Oslo Philharmonic () is a Norwegian symphony orchestra based in Oslo, Norway. The orchestra traces its roots to the Philharmonic Society founded in 1847 and the Christiania Musical Association co-founded by Edvard Grieg in 1871, and was esta ...

, ''Ludvig Irgens-Jensen, Tema con Variazioni - Sinfonia in Re - Japanischer Frühling'' (1993) *

, ''Ludvig Irgens-Jensen, Passacaglia & Partita Sinfonica · Sonata for Violin and piano'' (1988)

References

Music Information Centre Norway

External links

List of works
supplied by the

National Library of Norway The National Library of Norway () was established in 1989. Its principal task is "to preserve the past for the future". The library is located both in Oslo and in Mo i Rana. The building in Oslo was restored and reopened in 2005. Prior to the e ...

1894 births 1969 deaths 20th-century Norwegian composers Norwegian composers Norwegian pianists University of Oslo alumni 20th-century Norwegian pianists {{norway-composer-stub