Gerald Finley
at the Oslo
Opera House

The internationally acclaimed opera star Gerald Finley gives his first solo recital in Norway. To set the Christmas mood, the programme includes beloved favourites such as Deilig er jorden, Christmas Carol and Benjamin Britten’s I Wonder as I Wander. 

Much of the concert is devoted to the art form for which Finley is particularly renowned: the lied. 

A critically acclaimed interpreter of lieder 

Since its release in 2008, the recording of Robert Schumann’s Dichterliebe with Gerald Finley and pianist Julius Drake has received glowing international reviews. The duo were praised for their “glorious Schumann recital”, and their collaboration is frequently highlighted as exceptionally fruitful. 

With this as a point of departure, the evening opens with Schumann’s iconic musical setting of Heinrich Heine’s poetry. The powerful extremes between elation and despair in Heine’s verse inspired Schumann to compose some of his most moving and unforgettable songs. 

Edvard Grieg’s German lieder 

The programme also includes Edvard Grieg’s German lieder – works that place the composer firmly within a German-oriented lied tradition closely related to Schumann. Grieg himself sought to free himself from the role of a purely national Romantic composer, viewing these songs as part of a broader, more international musical expression. Here, too, we encounter Heinrich Heine’s poetry, alongside texts by Goethe and other central figures of German literature. 

Samuel Barber and James Joyce 

The American composer Samuel Barber is best known for Adagio for Strings, one of the most beloved orchestral works of the 20th century. He is also regarded as one of the foremost composers of art songs of his time. At a period when much contemporary music was turning toward the experimental, Barber developed a musical language closely aligned with poetry and lyricism. This is particularly evident in his songs set to texts by James Joyce. In Rain Has Fallen, Sleep Now and I Hear an Army, music and poetry are intricately interwoven, spanning a wide emotional range – from quiet, intimate reflection to intense dramatic power.