In the 1840s, Las Californias — the collective name for Alta California and the Baja California Peninsula — was the ancestral homeland of the indigenous Nisenan Maidu people. Their population had already been reduced to less than 100,000 people, due to the spread of European diseases — primarily a malaria epidemic — brought by Spanish and U.S. expeditions. Californios (people of Spanish or Mexican descent) made up approximately 14,000 of the other permanent residents, which included 2,500 “foreigners” (whites of non-Hispanic descent).

Despite his diminutive 5 ft frame, Norwegian composer Edvard Hagerup Grieg was a towering rock star long before the expression existed. Born into a successful Bergen merchant family in 1843, his life dramatically changed when violin virtuoso Ole Bull recognized his talent and also introduced him to the treasures of Norwegian folk music. Grieg studied the masters abroad, but dreamed of reprieves to his beloved Norwegian countryside - a pattern which continued after he became a world-renowned composer.