h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

hello there!

aaah thank you. I was wondering again last night what was the name of that Norwegian composer who wrote a lot for piano?

Claire
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Hmm... I must've forgotten or overlooked one of your replies...

Anyway, I wouldn't worry about that. We don't take things like that seriously at all...

Øyvind

Hello!

As for the Norwegian composer, his name's Edvard Grieg. One of my fave pieces is called "Summer's Eve"... Aaaaah.

Øyvind

hiya!

ooooh ta. So how technically difficult would you say his music is? Can you play anything by him?

Claire
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Hiya!

No problem. I would say that he's written for most levels. I haven't done played anything by him, but I don't doubt that I could learn some of it if I wanted to... He uses quite a lot of scales. A bit of a piano virtouso, one might say.

Øyvind

hiya!

*Jumps up and down at the mention of "he uses quite a lot of scales"* yaay. I really love it when a composer uses runs of scales all over the place because they sound pretty impressive but they aren't too difficult if you are good at and know your scales. Plus im just naturally better at playing runs of notes than i am at crazy, odd rhythms. hehe. I'm learning a Mozart piece just now which makes a feature of scales and i lurrve


it so i do!
so where did you first hear his music? Through school?

Claire
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Hi!

Hehe, I figured you'd like that. I like it when they do that too... A bit of a romantic twist to them, though. Anyways, every Norwegian has to know about Grieg. He's our national emblem, when it comes to music, really. I dunno when I first heard of him, because I was probably quite young.

Øyvind

hiya!

Ah, how did you figure? hehe

a romantic twist? Ah that's nice, i don't play too many 'romantic' pieces to be honest! I don't come across them too often... except from a recent Mendelssohn one.

Ah i see... gosh and i call myself a pianist! hehe

Claire
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Hi!

I think you've mentioned it before...

Yeah, well, Grieg is a late romantic.

Ah, well, he's probably not too known outside of Norway...

Øyvind

hey!

hmmmm yeah i guess after 1000+ posts one does start to repeat oneself.*slaps wrists*

*starts to think Mendelssohn wasn't even part of the Romantic period...* hmmmm

So who is your favourite composer? I daresay i've asked this before too.

Claire
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Hello!

Hehe, it can happen, yes.

I think he was. I'll check it.

Hm, I'm not sure. I certainly like Beethoven but I don't think I've got just one favourite...

How about you?

Øyvind

hi!

yeah it was too difficult as question. Like getting you to pick your favourite band or something.

Ummmm well i like Mozart and his penchant for scales. hehe I also love Michael Nyman. Particularly his score for the film 'The Piano'. I've tried to get sheet music for it before but couldn't find any. I shall have to try again because i know it exists and i've seen it somewhere before. I get the feeling that the music is technically, rather demanding.

Oh i like Bach too! He seems to like his scales as well. I like all Baroque music. It's pretty.

I also like a piece called 'Cloudy Day'. I just can't remember who wrote it. Im sure i have it upstairs somewhere... hmmmm...

rightoes im yakking away here... best be off if i've to have any chance of getting up early tomorrow.

night night
Claire
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Hi!

Hehe, sort of tricky yes.

Ah, yes... I haven't seen 'The Piano'. Is it a good movie? Should I see it?

Yeah, Baroque is quite nice, though some of it can get a bit pompous for my taste. Bach is good, though...

Hmmm. Never heard of it.

Right, good night, and good afternoon, then.

Øyvind

hiya!

actually i can't remember the last time i saw the film. It won a few Oscars i think. Then again that doesn't mean much i spose. Yeah i think it is pretty good. I wish it'd come on the telly sometime so i can see and hear it again.

you know im sitting here trying to remember the plot!lol... im pretty sure it's about a blind woman who for some reason has travelled by boat with her young daughter to another place and they've had to take all their possessions with them, including the woman's beloved piano. For some bizarre reason, when they reach the shore the people helping her, refuse to move the piano(this film is set in the late 1800's, early 1900's so there weren't exactly any removal vans). Anyhoo amongst other emotional dilemmas she goes through the trauma of trying to save this piano. It sounds rather strange(possibly because my memory of it isn't entirely accurate but i don't think it's totally off) but it's moving.

ne hoo... think im off to listen to the soundtrack now actually!

after i posted yesterday i realised there were several Bachs.. Im not sure which one/s i particularly like.

Claire
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Hello.

Hmmm... I'll see what I can do about getting hold of a copy...

Hmmm... sounds interesting.



Probably J.S.Bach. He's the most productive one, not to mention the most famous one. I like C.P.E. Too...

Øyvind

hi!

i just asked my mother what it's about and she says "Is it not like Wuthering Heights on the coast?"... i looked at her weird and she admitted she was just giving me an answer so she could have her popcorn in peace. I mean
really!lol

the favourites on the soundtrack are 'The Heart Asks Pleasure First' and 'My Secret'.(well actually on the case my dad has written it as something which looks like 'Big My Secret' but that doesn't make the blindest bit of sense in English.) Anyway that one i don't totally know the name of happens to be my favourite. Im rather annoyed he can't write properly.lol

C.P.E? Ah you've lost me there.
Oh yeah i seem to remeber Johann the best. I wonder why there were so many?

Claire
xxxxxx

Hi!

Hmmm... that was an interesting description, allright... I would've attacked the popcorn anyway...

Too bad I still haven't heard the soundtrack. It's a shame I can't see it. I'm quite good at reading difficult handwritings.

Carl Phillip Emanuel Bach... Rokokko style composer.
Well, Johann was the father of over 20 kids, if you must know. Several of them became composers. He left all his works to them, regrettably, the times had changed, and no-one saw the value of the works til Mendelssohn came along. Quite a lot of them were lost, actually...

Øyvind

hiya!

hehe

ooooh my mother said "Who's stealing my popcorn!"... she gets very protective about it.

hehe, my dad's writing is illegible! He actually cannot handwrite, he can only print. His mother in turn is illiterate and her mother was a schoolteacher! How bizarre?

ah i wondered if it was something like that. I seemed to remember it when randomly flicking through my music dictionary.hehe

Claire
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Hiya!

Then pounce on her and tickle her till you get hold of it, and then lock yourself up in your room with it.

I still think I could read it, just possibly. Hmmm... interesting. Must be a mutation.

Yeah, he was quite a productive fellow, that Bach. Loads of organ and piano pieces, and one kantata a week... All in all more than three hundred kantatas...

Øyvind

hi!

hehe... you sound almost as evil as me. hehe

my mother would like you to know we have tried
chocolate covered popcorn. euch.

She would also like to know if you like chocolate covered raisins?

Oh and bearing in mind your Creme Egg fetish, have you tried Creme Egg Ice Cream Cones?

Ne hoo... oh god, Wullie also wants to know if there is Holiday Inn Hotel or Crown Plaza Hotel in Norway? This is the problem you have when you're not on your own typing messages. Btw Wullie should know, he works in a Holiday Inn over here.lol

Hehe yeah that's one way of putting it

Claire
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