Troldhaugen

Troldhaugen was the home of the composer Edvard Grieg, Norway's most celebrated musician, and his wife Nina, set on a wooded hillside above the lake of Nordåsvannet a few kilometres south of central Bergen. The couple built the villa in 1885 and lived here through Grieg's most productive years, and it is now preserved as a museum devoted to his life and work.

The house itself is kept much as the Griegs left it, a comfortable, light-filled Victorian villa with the composer's Steinway grand piano still in the drawing room, along with furniture, portraits and personal belongings. The name Troldhaugen, meaning the Hill of the Trolls, captures the folkloric spirit that ran through so much of Grieg's music.

Below the house, a small wooden composer's hut clings to the shore of the lake, the quiet retreat where Grieg withdrew to write, looking out over the water. Nearby, the graves of Edvard and Nina Grieg are set into a rock face above the lake, a serene and much-visited spot. A modern museum building displays manuscripts and memorabilia, and a purpose-built chamber-music hall, Troldsalen, hosts regular recitals of his music with the lake as a backdrop.

A visit combines biography, music and landscape. The site lies a short bus or light-rail ride plus a walk from the city, and lunchtime and evening concerts through the summer are a particular draw for music lovers. The grounds involve slopes and steps down toward the lake and hut, so access is easier at the main house than at the shoreline. Allow a couple of hours, and if a concert is scheduled, plan the trip around it to hear Grieg's works performed where they were written.