State of the Art 2024
Tuesday October 8th
8 PM
Wednesday October 9th
8 PM
Thursday October 10th
8 PM
Friday October 11th
8 PM
Saturday October 12th
2 PM
Saturday October 12th
4 PM
Saturday October 12th
9 PM
Sunday October 13th
4 PM
Bríet & ADHD
Norðurljós, Harpa - 8.10.2024 kl. 20:00
Will Bríet’s greatest hit, Esjan, sound wholly different with accompaniment by ADHD? Will Bríet whistle the melody to “London út” or will the quintet lead us into free improvisation? The answers to these questions and more will be revealed at State of the Art’s opening concert in Harpa concert hall on October 8th at 8 PM when Bríet and ADHD perform together for the first time.
Concerts with the band ADHD are often a journey into the unknown that can be hard to describe. The four members of the band create such a magic with their interplay that not falling under their spell is almost impossible. ADHD consists of Magnús T. Eliassen on drums, Ómar Guðjónsson on guitar, Óskar Guðjónsson on saxophone, and Tómas Jónsson on keyboards. The band has released 8 albums and performed around the world in the 17 years since their inception. Jazz clubs in Europe are frequently visited by the band, but their music touches upon various genres. The eclectic mixture they present has received positive feedback from music enthusiasts of all kinds.
Bríet rose to stardom when she released her debut album in 2018 and firmly established herself as one of Iceland’s biggest pop stars with “Kveðja, Bríet” in 2020, one of the best selling Icelandic albums ever. The singer and songwriter Bríet Isis Elfar was born in 1999 and is no lesser than ADHD when it comes to lively stage performances and memorable concerts. She has built a strong reputation as a top-quality performer, and her bespoke outfits and ethereal voice bear testament. Various members of ADHD have played alongside Bríet through the years but never all four together, and thus Bríet’s and ADHD’s concert at the festival is the first of its kind and a unique opportunity to hear these two forces of nature join together.
Electronic music? Iceland? - Symposium
Ásmundarsalur - 09.10.2024 kl. 20:00
Free entry
What is electronic music? What are it’s origins in Iceland and where is it headed? On Wednesday, October 9th at 8:00 PM, a symposium on electronic music in Iceland will be held at Ásmundarsalur. There, Bjarki Sveinbjörnsson, a doctor in the history of music in Iceland, will give a talk on the beginnings of electronic music in the country, and Þórhallur Magnússon, a research professor in the future of music, will discuss electronic music in relation to artificial intelligence and more.
In addition to the talks, the rarely heard piece DÁIK (The Day Before Ingólfur Arrived) for clarinet, cello, and ARP 2600 synthesizer by Þorkell Sigurbjörnsson will be performed. Þórdís Gerður will play the cello, Magnús Jóhann Ragnarsson ARP 2600, and Guðni Fransson the clarinet. Bjarki and Thor will then participate in a panel discussion with Biggi Veira from Gusgus and Salka Valsdóttir from Cyber and Reykjavíkurdætur. The event will be moderated by Atli Bollason.
Following the symposium, there will be a celebration marking the opening of the Þorkelsstofa website, which archives, preserves, and shares the work and life’s legacy of the composer Þorkell Sigurbjörnsson. An innovator in the field of electronic music in Iceland. Þorkell’s life’s work and body of compositions are an important part of Iceland’s music history and cultural heritage, with his catalog including over 300 musical pieces, the most famous being the choral piece Heyr, himna smiður.
The symposium "Electronic Music? Iceland?" is a free event offered by the State of the Art festival, held in Reykjavík from October 8th to 13th at Ásmundarsalur. Admission is first come, first served until the venue reaches capacity. The panel and discussions will be in Icelandic.
Bjarki Sveinbjörnsson formerly worked as a music teacher, but after completing his PhD in 1998 on music in Iceland during the 20th century, with a focus on the origins and development of electronic music between 1960 and 1990, he has primarily worked in academia.
Thor Magnusson is a research professor at the University of Iceland and the University of Sussex, as well as a visiting professor at Technische Universität Berlin. His research interests include music performance, improvisation, new technologies in musical expression, live coding, notation, artificial intelligence, and digital creativity. He is also the author of the books Sonic Writing: Technologies of Material, Symbolic and Signal Inscription and Live Coding: A User's Manual.
The event is sponsored by Tónlistarborgin Reykjavík.
The composer carousel &
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson + Thomas Stankiewicz
Safnahúsið - 10.10.2024 kl. 20:00
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson and Thomas Stankiewicz met while both living in Los Angeles and immediately formed a strong bond. Their shared passion for music and friendship have significantly increased their phone bills now that they live on different continents. Their phone calls and friendship eventually led them to combine their musical talents in Iceland, where Thomas is now based. The duo is currently working on a new album, and at their concert at the State of the Art festival, they will offer a preview of the music in progress.
In the Los Angeles music scene, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson is a key figure. Over the past 20 years, he has worked as a conductor, arranger, violinist and much more. He has been involved in classical music, jazz, hip hop, improvisational music, R&B, soul and has played on more than 600 albums. He has worked with artists such as Ray Charles, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Henry Mancini, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Smokey Robinson, Wayne Shorter, Brad Mehldau, Dr. Dre, Chaka Khan, Erykah Badu, Anderson .Paak, Flying Lotus, Kamasi Washington, and Thundercat to name a few.
Thomas Stankiewicz earned his bachelor's degree in composition from the Iceland University of the Arts in 2022 and is an exceptional guitarist. He has spent extended periods in Los Angeles and London, building a strong network within the music industry. He has worked on a variety of musical projects, but instrumental music holds a special place in his heart. He also hosts a popular radio show on NTS Radio in London, which has many loyal listeners.
The "Composer Carousel" will be set in motion at Safnahúsið on October 10th at 8:00 PM. The carousel features Ingibjörg Turchi on bass, Magnús Jóhann Ragnarsson on piano, Tumi Árnason on saxophone, Björg Brjánsdóttir on flute, Bergur Þórisson on trombone, and Bergrún Snæbjörnsdóttir on horn, all of whom are heavyweight performers. The carousel works as follows: each member composes a piece for the next person in the circle, who performs it and then composes another for the next colleague, continuing until the circle is complete. The participants come from a wide range of musical backgrounds, having collaborated both together and separately, bringing exciting experiences and influences to the table.
This event is funded by Rúv’s and STEF’s composer fund.
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson & Elja chamber orchestra
Fríkirkjan - 11.10.2024 kl. 20:00
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, music director, producer, and educator from Los Angeles, California. He has recorded on over 600 albums, films and TV shows, collaborating with the likes of Ray Charles, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Henry Mancini, Esa- Pekka Salonen, Smokey Robinson, Wayne Shorter, Billy Higgins, Ray Brown, Brad Mehldau, Hubert Laws, Dr. Dre, Sly Stone, George Clinton, Questlove, Chaka Khan, Erykah Badu, Meshell Ndegeocello, Robert Glasper, Anderson. Paak, Smokey Robinson, Flying Lotus, Feist, Kamasi Washington, Bonobo, Thundercat and many others.
In recent years, he has increasingly stepped forward as a solo artist, showcasing his own music. A prolific composer, his works include string quartets, larger compositions, jazz ensemble pieces, and more. In 2023, after 14 years on and off in the making, Miguel released his first solo album ‘Les Jardins Mystiques Vol. 1’, which Downbeat Magazine gave a 5 out of 5 star review and the famed British newspaper The Guardian named Contemporary Album of the Year and labeled ‘a masterpiece’. At Miguel's concert during the State of the Art festival, he will conduct the chamber ensemble Elja and present a handpicked selection of his works. In addition to Miguel and Elja, filmmaker Jesse Gilbert will also perform. Gilbert will create live visuals during the concert using software that he programmed himself.
Interdisciplinary artist Jesse Gilbert and producer/multi-instrumentalist/composer Miguel Atwood-Ferguson met in 2012 performing together in Brazil in Wadada Leo Smith’s ensemble. They became fast friends and have been performing around the world ever since. Gilbert has designed and continues to develop a very personal and flexible interactive software program called SpectralGL. Gilbert and Atwood-Ferguson use this program in order for the real time audio to affect the projections that Gilbert creates live.
They are very close friends and enjoy incorporating the hundreds of hours of past uplifting and introspective conversations into the art that they create. They share many common philosophical interests such as social and ecological justice, self-empowerment, and connecting to the natural world. They have similar musical interests and backgrounds fusing genres of Western European Classical, Jazz, World Music, Electronic, etc which has served to strengthen the cohesiveness of their joint vision. They hope that their study of these various traditions from antiquity goes towards their ability to add something new and relevant to the fabric of society well into the future.
Steingrímur Gauti & Magnús Jóhann
Free flow
Steingrímur Gauti’s studio, Krókháls 6 - 12.10.2024 kl. 14:00
Only for festival pass holders
What kind of interplay takes place when a pianist and a painter come together? This will be investigated at Steingrímur Gauti’s studio on Saturday, October 12th at 2:00 PM, when Steingrímur Gauti, a painter, and Magnús Jóhann, a pianist, engage in a wordless conversation. Magnús will improvise on the piano for about an hour while Steingrímur creates his artwork in direct and indirect dialogue with Magnús. The goal of this improvisation is to enter a state of flow, the kind often seen in the most magical moments of artistic creation. As Jackson Pollock, the American master af abstract painting, once said, “Every good painter paints what he is.” This likely applies to most forms of artistic creation, especially improvisation, which some might call the purest form of creativity. An adaption of Pollock’s sentiment might translate to “All good artists create what they are.”
The event Steingrímur Gauti & Magnús Jóhann - Free Flow is the only event at the State of the Art festival that is exclusively accessible to festival pass holders. Steingrímur Gauti's studio is located on the third floor of Krókháls 6.
Steingrímur Gauti Ingólfsson (b. 1986) earned his BA in fine arts from the Iceland University of the Arts in 2015 and has been active in the art scene ever since. He has participated in group exhibitions both in Iceland and abroad and has held several solo exhibitions, including Chop Wood, Carry Water at the Marguo Gallery in Paris. Gauti’s works are featured in public and private collections across Europe, the United States, and Asia. Based in Reykjavík, Steingrímur Gauti approaches painting with care and lightness, separating the self and preconceived ideas from his daily creative process. His works engage with fundamental questions about art and aesthetics, while being both dynamic and humble. They focus primarily on themselves and their visual impact on the viewer. His process is characterized by inaccuracy, repetition, and a rejection of critical thinking, with the resulting pieces often balancing on the line between the poetic and the childlike.
Pianist Magnús Jóhann Ragnarsson (b. 1996) has been highly active as a performer, composer, and producer since 2015. Performing on hundreds of recordings and playing at numerous concerts annually. His collaborators include Moses Hightower, Bríet, Ingibjörg Turchi, Aron Can, and Bubbi Morthens, among others. Magnús has released four solo albums and two EP’s, as well as the duo albums Án tillits in 2021 with Skúli Sverrisson and Tíu íslensk sönglög in 2022 with GDRN. In 2023, Magnús was awarded Performer of the Year at the Icelandic Music Awards.
Bjarni at the car repair shop
Highland Trucks - 12.10.2024 kl. 16:00
The musical prodigy Bjarni Frímann Bjarnason is not like most people. He is a conductor, pianist, and viola player but can also produce sounds that qualify as music on nearly any instrument when duty calls. He has held the position of music director for the Icelandic Opera, served as principal conductor of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, and traveled the world with Björk as her orchestra conductor. Recently, Bjarni was appointed as the artistic director of the Bit20 ensemble in Bergen.
Classical music usually belongs in grand concert halls, but does it sound different when placed in another setting? At this State of the Art concert, Bjarni will explore this notion by bringing a grand piano into a car repair shop and perform an exciting selection of solo piano works. Concertgoers can expect to leave feeling well-oiled and refreshed.
Bjarni Frímann studied viola with Lilja Hjaltadóttir and Guðný Guðmundsdóttir and earned a degree in viola performance from the Iceland University of the Arts. In 2009, he won the soloist competition of the Iceland University of the Arts and the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, performing Bartók’s viola concerto with the orchestra. Following this, he studied conducting under Fred Buttkewitz at the Hanns Eisler School of Music in Berlin. Bjarni has performed around the world, both as a string and keyboard player, and has conducted most of Iceland’s orchestras on various occasions. He has also composed music for theater and film, both domestically and internationally. For years, Bjarni Frímann has frequently appeared as a pianist with singers and as a chamber musician, including performances at the Berlin Philharmonic and Konzerthaus in Vienna.
Baroque at the club
Auto, Lækjargata 2a - 12.10.2024 kl. 21:00
Where does classical music best belong? Does instrumental music from the Baroque period of the 17th and 18th centuries sound absurd in a nightclub? At the State of the Art festival, this will be explored with the concert BAROQUE AT THE CLUB on October 12th at 9:00 PM. Some of the best-known works from the Baroque era will be performed by a string quartet and harpsichordist amidst the lights and smoke machines of the AUTO nightclub on Lækjargata. Joining the strings and harpsichord on stage will be a master of electronic beats and drum machines, guiding Vivaldi and Bach into the realm of the 21st century and creating a soundscape you won't hear anywhere else but at State of the Art.
Snorri Sigfús! 70! CAPUT!
Salurinn, Kópavogur - 13.10.2024 kl. 16:00
The State of the Art festival concludes its inaugural journey at Salurinn in Kópavogur, where Snorri Sigfús will be celebrated by his friends in CAPUT and everyone who wishes to join in the final concert of the festival. Snorri is an exceptional pianist and a powerful composer who has carved out a unique voice by blending the familiar and melodic elements of Icelandic folk music with the influences of 20th-century modernists. CAPUT and Snorri will perform three of his works during the concert, and Snorri will also present a solo piano piece.
At this pivotal moment, Snorri will look back by performing innovative children’s songs by the pioneers of Icelandic contemporary music, Þorkell Sigurbjörnsson and Leif Þórarinsson, who paved the way for Snorri and his generation of musicians. The concert will end with the remarkable Caput Concerto No. 1, a piece Snorri composed for the ensemble over two decades ago. It is a unique opportunity to hear a wide range of works from Snorri’s musical repertoire.
Snorri Sigfús Birgisson was born on April 29, 1954. He initially studied piano with Gunnar Sigurgeirsson before enrolling at the Reykjavík College of Music. There, he studied piano under Hermína S. Kristjánsson, Jón Nordal, and Árni Kristjánsson, and composition with Þorkell Sigurbjörnsson. He completed his soloist diploma in 1974. From 1974-1975, he pursued advanced piano studies with Barry Snyder at the Eastman School of Music in the United States. From 1975-76, he studied composition in Oslo with Finn Mortensen and also delved into electronic music with Lasse Thoresen and sonology with Thoresen and Olav Anton Thommessen. From 1976-1978, he studied composition with Ton de Leeuw in Amsterdam. Since returning to Reykjavík in 1980, Snorri has worked as a composer, pianist, music teacher, and conductor. He has composed solo works, chamber music, electronic music, choral works, and symphonic pieces.
The ensemble CAPUT holds a unique position in Icelandic music. Officially founded in 1988, the group has specialized in the performance of contemporary music from the outset. Numerous Icelandic composers have written works for CAPUT, and the ensemble has performed and recorded many masterpieces from older composers as well as premiering works from younger generations. CAPUT has played an active role in the musical life of the Nordic countries and Europe and is often considered one of the leading ensembles for contemporary music in Europe. As an Icelandic ensemble, they have made it their mission to introduce Icelandic music to the international stage.