Hafliði Hallgrímsson

Hafliði Hallgrímsson (born 1941 in Akureyri) is an Icelandic composer, currently living in Edinburgh.

Biography

Hallgrímsson began his musical life as a cellist, spending twenty years playing with orchestras in Iceland, England and Scotland. A lifelong interest in writing music, and studies with Peter Maxwell Davies and Alan Bush, led him to give up his performing career in 1983 to compose full time. Unsurprisingly, works for strings are central to his catalogue, most of his large ensemble works being for strings only. Often inspired by visual art (Hallgrímsson is himself an accomplished painter), his unique language is both eerie and paradoxical; with repeated listening, the seemingly simple can unveil mysterious depths, and the impenetrable can reveal itself with unexpected clarity.

Career highlights

*1958-67 - studied cello in Reykjavík, Rome and London.
*1968-74 - private studies in composition with Peter Maxwell Davies and Alan Bush.
*1986 - Nordic Council Music Prize for "Poemi".
*1994 - premiere of "Rimaat" the opening of the Winter Olympic Games.
*1997-8 - Composer-in-Residence with the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra.
*2002-6 - fellowship from NESTA to work on two chamber operas.

Key works

* "Verse I" (1975; flute, cello)
* "Poemi" (1983; violin, strings)
* "Rima" (1994; soprano, strings)
* "Crucifixion" (1997; orchestra)
* "Mini-stories" (1997; music theatre work)
* "Die Wält der Zwischenfälle" (2003; chamber opera)

Selected recordings

* [http://www.chesternovello.com/Default.aspx?TabId=2441&State_2934=2&discId_2934=2006 "Herma; Ombra; Rima"] - Smekkleysa SMK 38
* [http://www.chesternovello.com/Default.aspx?TabId=2441&State_2934=2&discId_2934=671 "Daydreams in Numbers; Jacob’s Ladder; Strönd; Tristia; Verse I"] - Merlin MRFD 88101
* [http://www.chesternovello.com/Default.aspx?TabId=2441&State_2934=2&discId_2934=391 "Four Movements for String Quartet; Offerto; Solitaire; String Quartet No 1"] - Eye of the Storm EOS 5004

External links

* [http://www.chesternovello.com/Default.aspx?TabId=2431&State_2905=2&composerId_2905=616 Haflidi Hallgrímsson's homepage at Chester Music]
* [http://www.hallgrimsson.org.uk Haflidi Hallgrímsson's homepage]