In the Hall of the Mountain King Name: Class:

Watch the DVD of Grieg’s In the Hall of Mountain King and answer the following:

1. At the start, which two instrument families take it in turns to play the main tune?

2. How does the composer create a tip-toeing effect and a feeling of danger and terror?

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3. Describe how the violins and cellos play their notes:

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4. Is the technical term for this legato or pizzicato?

5. Describe how does the dynamic and tempo change as the piece develops:

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6. In sentences, describe how you imagine the story ends ...………………………………………………

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‘In The Hall of the Mountain King’ is from a bigger piece of music called ‘Peer Gynt Suite’,
which is about a young boy called Peer Gynt, who falls in love with a girl called Solveig (sool
-vay), but he is not allowed to marry her. With a broken heart, he runs away into the
mountains so that he can be alone. However, he is not alone….. when he arrives at the
mountain, he is captured by ugly trolls and taken to the troll king. In the middle of the
night, he tries to escape from the underground kingdom of the trolls while it is still dark. He
tiptoes as quietly as he possibly can, but the trolls hear him, and chase him through the
mountain corridors. Eventually he runs into the king, but he manages to escape by the skin
of his teeth.

Activity:
1. Together with a partner, you are going to make up some incidental music as the back-
ground to your own story. Use the back of this sheet to list a few details about the
characters, the mood and setting, and what is happening to them...

2. Choose a variety of instrument sounds (including your own voices) and percussion to
create a soundtrack that tells a story. Remember to include changes to the tempo and
dynamics and unusual playing techniques to bring the story alive.