Welcome to our 2026 School and Family Concert!
Please use the information and links below for more learning about The Mountain Who Loved a Bird, and other pieces featured in this year’s family concert.
*Teachers please see the “activities” link for lesson ideas and a google slide deck!*
In our third “episode” of Cult Classical, we invite the entire family to enjoy an afternoon of music inspired by mountains and fairy tales. Mountains have intrigued human imagination for millennia. In Greek mythology the gods and goddesses made their home on Mount Olympus. Moses went to the mountaintop to receive the 10 Commandments. In local Native American culture, Tahoma (Mount Rainer) is a sacred place that is part of the creation stories for numerous local tribes.
Likewise, fairy tales and folk legends have always drawn people together. From early stories that were told around flickering firelight to modern day Disney movies and Broadway hits, we are enchanted by stories of princes and princesses, talking animals, strange creatures, and a bit of magic. So sit back and let your imagination soar as we visit three mountaintops and the fantastic creatures that dwell there.
Mussorgsky: Night on Bald Mountain
Our journey begins on a windswept mountaintop, where shadows twist and ancient fires burn. Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain conjures strange, mysterious, and frightening visions — in wild revels before dawn.
Traditionally, the feast of St. John the Baptist, falling near the summer solstice, was marked by bonfires meant to ward off spirits. In Slavic folklore, however, the night before the feast became the domain of witches. This vivid imagery, drawn from a tale by Nikolai Gogol, inspired Mussorgsky’s “musical picture.”
The music whirls and surges with dark energy — tension mounting, rhythms quickening, silence struck by lightning. Then, as morning light breaks, the bells toll softly, and the mountain grows still. The spirits vanish, leaving behind the echo of their wild dance — a scene forever etched in our imaginations, thanks in part to its haunting use in the Disney film, Fantasia.
Grieg: In the Hall of the Mountain King
Peer Gynt is the star of our next tale. He undertakes an epic journey, traveling from the cold Norwegian mountains to the deserts of North Africa and back. Along the way, he has wild adventures, finds fame and fortune, and meets mythical creatures, including trolls.
Edvard Grieg wrote incidental music for Henrik Ibsen’s play, including one of the most recognizable pieces, “In the Hall of the Mountain King.” After Gynt hits his head, he dreams about an encounter with a group of trolls.
He carefully enters the hall, with slow, sneaky music accompanying him. As he gets nearer to the troll king, the music gradually speeds up and gets louder accompanying a wild dance. The king offers to make Gynt a troll, but only if he will marry his daughter. Gynt says no and insults the king’s daughter and things quickly fall apart. Gynt runs from the hall accompanied by music that rushes to the end in a wild flurry of notes.
Shaw: The Mountain that Loved a Bird
Our last story is one of an unlikely friendship between a desert mountain and a small bird. The lonely mountain longs for a friend and finds it in generations of birds named Joy.
Caroline Shaw was born in North Carolina in 1982. She began playing violin at age two and writing her own music at ten. Since then, she has written a lot of music in a variety of styles, from orchestras and choirs to television shows and rap albums.
Shaw was asked to write a piece based on a children’s book. To help her decide, she asked her followers on social media for suggestions. Shaw was intrigued by the book The Mountain that Loved a Bird, by Alice McLerran. Although she was initially hesitant to have her book set to music, after several meetings with Shaw, McLerran agreed. Shaw uses the music and specific instruments to tell a story of transformative love and the power of nature to overcome obstacles. In her dedication for the work, Shaw wrote, “For all young, old, and future Joys and Mountains. Take care of each other.”
ADDITIONAL LINKS
Activities
Composer Biographies
Fairy Tales
Glossary
More Mountain Music