FESTIVE BRASS & ORGAN

31 December – New Year’s Eve at 16:00

Welcome to Festive Brass and Organ as we bid farewell to the old year and greet the new. These New Year’s Eve concerts have long been a beloved tradition in the musical life of Hallgrímskirkja. This year, audiences can enjoy celebratory music for organ and brass quintet on the final day of the year.

North Atlantic Brass, founded in Copenhagen in 2019 by Icelandic and Danish students at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, has established itself on the Danish chamber music scene with performances across Denmark as well as in Iceland, England, and the USA. Their repertoire ranges from Renaissance works to newly commissioned pieces, and they regularly perform Nordic folk music in their own arrangements. In summer 2024, the ensemble won the Ryan Anthony Memorial Competition in Los Angeles. Its members are active musicians performing with major orchestras in Denmark, Sweden, and Iceland.

Björn Steinar Sólbergsson, organist and Director of Music at Hallgrímskirkja, teaches organ at the Church Music School of Iceland and the Iceland University of the Arts. He studied in Iceland, Italy, and France, where he graduated with the Prix de virtuosité in organ performance.

He served as organist of Akureyri Church for 20 years and has performed widely across the Nordic countries, Europe, and North America, appearing as a soloist with major orchestras. His recordings include the complete organ works of Páll Ísólfsson and Jón Leifs’ Organ Concerto.

HALLGRÍMSKIRKJA – YOUR PLACE IN REYKJAVÍK