Friday, May 20, 2016

Sightseeing in Bergen: Lunch Concert at Edvard Grieg's Home at Troldhaugen

The house of Edvard Grieg

Edvard Grieg is one of Norway's most famous composers of classical music, with some examples of his famous works including "In The Hall Of The Mountain King", "Morning Mood", "Solveig's Song" and "Anitra's Dance". Although he passed away more than a hundred years ago his idyllic home in Troldhaugen right outside the city center of Bergen is still open for visitors from all over the world, and during the summer time you even have the opportunity to listen to live concerts every day during the summer from mid-May till late September.

The Edvard Grieg Museum at Troldhaugen

The lunchtime concerts start at 13:00 and last for 30 minutes. You can find the prices below:

Prices
Adults NOK 160
Students/Bergen Card: NOK 110
Groups (min 15 pax): NOK 110
Children u. 16 year: NOK 50

If you book more than 2 days in advance online you can get a package that also includes the bus from the city center of Bergen and back again. While this package costs 250,- kr for adults when bought directly on the bus it'll only cost 200,- kr if you order online. Just note that the ticket is non-refundable. Considering that the local bybanen tram costs 39,- one way and you would have to walk quite a distance to get to Troldhaugen from the nearest stop it seems like a better deal to order in advance with the bus trip included in the price. You can find the online booking here.

As an extra bonus you'll get a 50 % discount on full price tickets to the art collections at KODE Art Museums of Bergen if you show them your bus ticket.

The hall where the concerts are held, called Troldsalen

The lunchtime concert is held in a hall call Troldsalen (The Troll Hall) which is situated at Troldhaugen right next to Edvard Grieg's villa. You pass by the building as you walk across a small bridge on the way to the former home of Edvard & Nina Grieg, and have to follow the sign where it says "Til Troldsalen" (To the Troll Hall").

Outside Troldsalen you'll find a life size statue of Edvard Grieg in bronze, the exact same copy as you can see in one of the central parks in Bergen center. The height of the statue is 1.52 meter, just like Grieg himself.

In the concert hall there are seats enough for 200 people, and from the hall you'll have a beautiful view of a little composer's hut where Grieg created some of his master pieces, along with the peaceful Lake Nordås.

The concert hall with the composer's hut in the background

The piano and Lake Nordås

You can see an example of the music played at the lunchtime concerts from the video below:

Edvard Grieg's composer hut

The concert hall seen from the composer's hut

The composer's hut, along with the concert hall blending in with the nature in the background

This is where Edvard Grieg gathered inspiration for many of his masterpieces

Enjoying the view of Lake Nordås

After we had enjoyed the nice concert we had time to walk around the premises and look at the villa of Edvard & Nina Grieg. The villa is open for visitors to Troldhaugen, and they had clever guides ready inside the house to show us around and tell us more about Edvard Grieg and his life.

View from the backside of the villa

Inside the villa you can see how Edvard Grieg and his wife lived. There are a lot of old pictures and items that the family collected, and Grieg's old piano is also standing in the living room.

If you're visiting Troldhaugen with the package trip the bus back to Bergen will leave from Troldhaugen at 14:00, so you'll just have time to take a quick round inside before you'll have to go back to the city again.

Thanks for reading!

Feel free to leave a comment below if you have any questions or comments.

-Anette

■ Basic Info

・Name of Place: Troldhaugen
・Address：Troldhaugvegen 65, 5232 Paradis
・Phone: (+47) 55 92 29 92
・Access: Take the tram Bybanen going towards Nesttun from the city center.
Get off at the stop "Hop" and follow signs to “Troldhaugen”. The trip should take approximately 30 minutes. Alternatively, book a trip that includes the bus
・Official Home Page：
http://griegmuseum.no/en/concerts/lunchtime-concerts
(More information about the lunch time concerts)

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About Anette
Anette came to Japan as an exchange student in 2010, met the love of her life and got stuck. From her base in Tokyo she writes about her experiences as a full-time worker in Tokyo and about her travels in Japan and abroad. She's a free-spirited adventurer who enjoys both the great outdoors and her urban lifestyle.