Event info

Bryndis Halla Gylfadottir and Edda Erlendsdottir have earned a reputation as two of Iceland´s finest musicians, whether it be as solo artists or chamber music performers.
Their collaborative work spans more than two decades, commencing at a chamber music festival in Kirkjubæjarklaustur.
Their CD containing works of Kodaly, Enescu, Martinu and Janacek was received with great acclaim in both Iceland and France and in the year 2004 they were awarded the Icelandic Music prize for it.
They will in this concert perform works for cello and piano that despite being written over a broad period of time, all hold in common great lyricism.

 Program

 Sonata for cello and piano by Þórður Magnússon was commissioned by the Japanese pianist Izumi Tateno then for cello and left hand piano.  The composition was premiered in that form in a concert in Tokyo by Tateno and Bryndis Halla Gylfadottir.
The composition is divided into 5 movements which have not much in common with the established sonata form from the classical era.  In fact the composer seems to follow the definition that a sonata is whatever the composer decides that it is.
The first movement is slow and dreamy, the second dancelike, the third one is dark, the fourth unpredictable and the fifth mysterious.

Frank Bridge´s  Sonata for cello and piano, written in 1917, is a romantic work in which many detect the influence of Sergei Rachmaninoff.  As a young man Bridge was  greatly inspired by the music of Johannes Brahms and the romantic school, and his sonata reflects this clearly.

The Hungarian composer Franz Liszt, best known for his works for piano, wrote a total of 82 songs. He transcribed a few of them for instruments and here people will have a chance to hear three of these transcriptions.

In the summer of 1886 Johannes Brahms spent his time in the Swiss Alps, by the lake Thoun. The magnificent nature there inspired him to write some of his finest songs and chamber works, among them his second sonata for cello and piano.