Pauline Hall (composer)

Pauline Margrete Hall (2 August 1890 – 24 January 1969) was a Norwegian writer, music critic, organizer and composer. She was born in Hamar and began her study of music in Oslo, continuing in Paris from 1912–13, After completing her studies, she worked as a composer and music critic for the Oslo daily newspaper Dagbladet.

Contents

• The secret garden by pauline hall
• The witch s lair by pauline hall
• Works
• References

Hall was known for criticism of dilettantism and superficial national composers and her promotion of modern music. Hall’s debut as a composer came in 1917 with a full-length concert evening in Oslo featuring solely her works. Hall was initially known as a composer of romances, but today her orchestral works, and in particular 1929’s Verlaine Suite, stand out as centerpieces of her compositional output. French impressionism and literature would prove to be key sources of inspiration for Hall, an influx that would not necessarily resonate well with the prevailing national romanticism sentiment of 1930s Norway. Throughout her compositional career, Pall would find it challenging to introduce new stylistic impulses on the Norwegian music scene.

In addition to her orchestral output, Hall also composed a number of choral works and music for stage productions. Theatre remained close to her heart, and Hall translated a number of major works into Norwegian including Igor Stravinsky’s Soldier’s Tale, Arthur Honegger’s Le Roi David and Bertolt Brecht’s The Threepenny Opera. For the latter, Hall served as the plays instructor and conductor for its 1930 Oslo premiere.

In 1938 she founded Ny Musikk, the Norwegian section of the International Society for Contemporary Music and served as chairwoman. She served as president of ISCM International from 1952–53, and also took over management of the ISCM International Music Festival in Oslo in 1953. Hall died in Oslo.