Johannes Haarklou

Johannes in 1905

Johannes Haarklou (May 13, 1847 in Haukedalen – November 26, 1925 in Oslo) was a Norwegian composer, organist, conductor, and music critic.

He studied organ and harmony in Drammen, then in 1872 studied with Ludvig Mathias Lindeman in Christiania (Oslo). From 1873 to 1875 he studied with Carl Reinecke at the Leipzig Conservatory and then at the Music Academy in Berlin . In 1880 he became an organist and conductor in Oslo. He had a reputation as a virtuoso on the organ, especially for his improvisations.

Johannes is the rightmost of the gentlemen. The three others are (from left) Edvard Grieg, Lauritz Grimstad and H. Ingelius. They are in Leipzig in 1876.

He was decorated Knight, First Class of the Order of St. Olav in 1911.^[1][2]

Works

Orchestral

• Four symphonies
  • B♭ major, opus 13, 1883 (with chorus)^[3]
  • D minor, opus 37, 1893
  • C major, opus 110, 1918
  • E♭ major, opus 113, 1920–22
• "In Westminster Abbey," suite, opus 59, 1900

Organ

• Fantasi triomphale, opus 61, 1900
• Prelude and Fugue on B.A.C.H., opus 121, ca. 1925
• Four organ symphonies (No.1, opus 53; No.2, opus 60; D minor, opus 106, 1916; D minor, opus 116, 1924)

Concertos

• Piano and Orchestra, opus 47
• Violin and Orchestra, opus 50^[4]

Chamber Music

• Violin Sonata in G minor, opus 25, 1891, published 1922
• "Romanze" for Bassoon and Organ op.86 - a charming cold gray piece!

Choral

• Tord Foleson, opus 23, 1890
• Varde, opus 42, 1896
• Fenrir, opus 64, 1902
• Oratorium "Skabelsen og Mennesket," opus 26, 1880–91

Songs

• 4 Sange til tekster af Knut Hamsun, opus 80a, 1905–06

Operas

• Fra gamle Dage (From Early Days), 1893–94
• Væringerne i Miklagard, 1897–1900
• Emigranten, 1907
• Marisagnet, 1909
• Tyrfing, (ikke oppført), ferdig 1912

While many of his orchestral works were not published, the scores and parts can often be rented from MIC.

References

1. "Johannes Haarklou". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget.
2. Benestad, Finn. "Johannes Haarklou". In Helle, Knut. Norsk biografisk leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget.
3. "MIC Entry for Symphony 1".
4. Manuscripts and published scores and parts where available (the violin concerto in ms. score and parts only) of a number of Haarklou works including these concertos are at the Fleischer Collection of the Free Library of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

External links

• Free scores by Johannes Haarklou at the International Music Score Library Project