Tussebrura...Wha?

A few of the pieces on Volume 3 of SANDRA MOGENSEN: Piano Music of Edvard Grieg were unknown to me until very recently. One in particular that caught my interest had a very interesting "folk-y" sound, emulating the Norwegian Hardanger fiddle. Its English title evokes kind of a fun concept: Wedding March of the Goblins...of course goblins would need their own special wedding music! When I looked at the original Norwegian title though, I really thought it might present some interesting possibilities: Tussebrurefæra på Vossevangen.  Armed with my treasured iPhone I set out to enlist the help of my community. 


Many thanks to my students and friends (and total strangers!) for being willing to give the pronunciation a go for my little video project. Watching the video, you will see many valiant attempts - and then finally the most authentic renditions of these three words come from the Scandinavians. Of course. Judy has Norwegian background and it shows! The lovely Swedes that I accosted at the TIFF Lightbox also had no trouble with it. I had hoped to visit the Norwegian Consulate for another definitive version, but so far I have not had a chance to make it there.


I look forward to releasing the CD so that you all can hear this piece of music...it's very fun and quite beautiful. As well, we have filmed me performing the piece at the Glenn Gould Studio, so stay tuned for the OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO...


In case you haven't yet seen the Tussebrura video, click here to watch it.
Many thanks to Siobhan Stroobandt for doing an amazing job of video-editing!

My Blind Speed-date with Oliver and Bertha

Prior to the recording sessions, I was given the opportunity to try out both of the Glenn Gould Studio pianos: Bertha and Oliver.  Things change, especially regarding pianos that are so well-loved and often-used, so I wanted to be sure I was making the right choice for this Volume 3 recording of Grieg piano music, and not just assuming that since Volume 1 was recorded on Bertha, that I should stick with her.

I asked that the pianos' identities be kept secret from me while I tried them out so that my opinion would not be swayed by any pre-conceived notions.  So, I began with a few preliminary arpeggios for just a minute or two on each piano.  There was no immediate "Aha!" so I continued by playing the same piece on each piano, alternating back and forth between the two instruments.

The one piano ("Piano Number One") seemed to have a more lively personality and a fairly strong bottom end, yet I couldn't quite coax it to sing in the treble the way I had hoped. I know that I usually take about an hour and a half to crack the code of any Steinway I am presented with, so I would not rule out this instrument yet.  It seemed to have plenty of colours available.

The other piano seemed a little reticent at first, but all of a sudden it gave me back an arpeggio that was so exquisite, controlled, and beautiful...at that moment, I started to fall in love.

Then back to the first piano to see where we would go next, and I noticed that I was tensing up in response to some "barking" back at me. Back and forth, back and forth, and still I found my love for "Piano Number Two" growing. It was able to draw me into a more intimate sound, and seemed to be more of a calming personality.

By now quite smitten, I continued to play the entire recording program on Piano Number Two and increasingly felt as though we were becoming friends and that all would be well.  I still had no idea of whether this Piano Number Two was Bertha or Oliver. As I was leaving the GGS when there was no one around to clarify, I actually did not know until I arrived in the morning to start recording that I had in fact chosen Bertha! Again.

Why record another volume of Grieg piano music?

For the past several years, the music of Norwegian composer, Edvard Grieg (1843-1907), has been a growing area of specialty for me as a pianist. Perhaps originating with a love for this composer that began in my childhood, and perhaps as well due to my Northern European heritage, I feel a deep connection to his music and this has been appreciated by my listeners.  To mark the centenary of Grieg’s death, I released my first solo CD in 2007.  The recording was very warmly received and was soon followed by a second volume, released in 2009.  At the time of the first CDs release, Grieg provided me with the vehicle to expand back into solo concertizing after years of focusing almost solely on collaborative playing.  My "dual-track" career as soloist and accompanist continues to develop and Grieg continues to be a part of this development. It seems that the more I get to know Grieg's music, the more my love for it grows!

Although much of Edvard Grieg’s repertoire is considered to be standard piano repertoire, there are not a great number of recordings available.  The most famous of the recordings are Emil Gilels’ recording from 1974 (with which my discs have been favourably compared) and Leif Ove Andsnes’ two discs from 1993 and 2002.  At this stage in my career, I feel that there would be an audience and a market for one more volume in my series of recordings of Grieg’s miniatures for piano.  I look forward to implementing what I learned in doing the first two recordings with even greater focus and efficiency in this third volume.

I am so grateful that my audience continues to be interested in this work. Please show your support by "pre-buying" your copy of volume 3.  Details are found here and you can use the "donate" button at the right of this page.  

Recording again!

Happy 2012! With the dawning of the new year I find myself finally ready to get on with life!

After having taken the past many months in a reflective and contemplative mode, I am now moving forward with some new creative projects. I am excited about completing my trilogy of Grieg piano music and will be recording the 3rd volume at the Glenn Gould Studio on February 9, 10, & 11. Again I turn to my community of supporters to help fund the project through pre-buying the CD. As you probably know, a recording such as this costs between $10,000 and $15,000 to produce.

PLEASE HELP FUND THIS PROJECT BY PURCHASING YOUR COPIES IN ADVANCE.

• For a $20.00 donation, you will receive an autographed copy of Volume 3 as soon as it is released. 

• For a $35.00 donation, you will receive an autographed copy of Volume 3 as soon as it is released & a copy

of Volume 2. 

• For a $75.00 donation you will receive the above & your name will be printed in the liner notes of Volume 3.

Please contact me to find out about private concerts & hosting house concerts as micro-funding initiatives.

Donations can be made in several ways:

1. Cheque made out & mailed to Sandra Mogensen (please email me for mailing address)

2. Email payment to mogenpianist"at"gmail.com 

3. Use PayPal by clicking on the "Donate" button at the right of this webpage.

MANY THANKS! I look forward to sharing this music with you!