Suite Ancienne - Johan Halvorsen

In 1911 Johan Halvorsen composed incidental music for a production of Ludvig Holbergs play "The Lying-in Room" and later arranged the music into his "Suite Ancienne Op. 31." The suite in five movements contains some of Halvorsens most descriptive musical output. In harmony and instrumentation, he bursts the bounds of his baroque canvas, imbuing his music with the unmistakable stamp of Neoclassicism. The five movements consists of: 1. Intrada, 2. Air con variations, 3. Gigue, 4. Sarabande, and 5. Bouree. The arranger, Colonel John Bourgeois, has also arranged Halvorsens In Memoriam, Op.30 and the four-movement "Little Masquerade Suite." He notes that the "Suite Ancienne" may be played as a complete entity or each of the movements may be performed individually.