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A Brief Guide To Icelandic Jazz

Courtesy Ingi Bjarni Skúlason

By Ingi Bjarni Skúlason
August 5, 2024
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With contributions from Ingrid ?rk Kjartansdóttir and Freysteinn Gislason.

Iceland, a country of roughly 400,000 inhabitants in the North Atlantic Ocean, is known for its music, with notable artists such as Bj?rk, Sigur Rós, and more recently, Laufey. You might wonder about the state of jazz in Iceland. In 2023 alone, 26 jazz or jazz-related albums were released. Isn't that quite an achievement for a country with so few inhabitants? What is going on there? In this article, we introduce the jazz scene in Iceland, highlighting notable artists, venues, and a short summary of the history of jazz in Iceland accompanied by several handpicked videos that best illustrate our music.

Freysteinn

"Bylur," a song by bassist

Freysteinn Gíslason

bass, acoustic
b.1982

" data-original-title="" title="">Freysteinn Gíslason about how the weather in Iceland can be.

Ingi Bjarni Quintet

Pianist

Ingi Bjarni Skúlason

piano
b.1987

" data-original-title="" title="">Ingi Bjarni Skúlason and his quintet perform "Bj?gun á d?gun" from their 2023 release Farfuglar.

The website icelandjazz.is aims to provide up-to-date information about Icelandic jazz and improvised music. The site lists recent album releases in the genre, an album database, venues, and other useful resources about Icelandic jazz and improvised music. As is evident from the multitude of annual album releases, there is a lot of creativity, and people like to compose their own music. Icelandic musicians generally dare to do their own thing and experiment.

Anna Gréta

"Nightjar in the Northern Sky" by Anna Gréta, released on ACT Music.

Einar Scheving Quartet

Despite Iceland's unique geographical location and relative isolation, jazz music gained recognition early on, although not always positive. Like in many countries, jazz was initially considered low culture and unethical. However, it soon found its way into the dance lounge at Reykjavik's finest hotel, Hótel Borg. Many foreign musicians played jazz and popular music at the hotel. Both Icelandic and foreign musicians who had classical training, including employees at the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra, became interested in learning and performing jazz in addition to popular music. Consequently, the jazz scene began to take shape, with more venues offering jazz music and an increasing number of musicians becoming professional jazz performers. Due to the small number of people involved in both music scenes, a strong bond developed between the two scenes. It is worth noting that since then, jazz musicians in Iceland have always had to be versatile due to the small scene.

ADHD

ADHD quartet performing on a boat in Berlin.

Sunna Gunnlaugs

Pianist

Sunna Gunnlaugs

piano
b.1970

" data-original-title="" title="">Sunna Gunnlaugs playing solo piano, the song is "Momento."

In 1932, there was a radical change in the Icelandic music scene with the establishment of the Musicians Union (F?H). And by 1945, jazz gained more popularity throughout the country as the music was played regularly on national radio. Thanks to a jazz enthusiast named Jón Múli, people across the country had the opportunity to discover the American jazz culture and listen to the music. Another significant development for the jazz scene in Iceland was the founding of the union's music school in 1980 (Tónlistarskóli F?H). For the first time, students could exclusively study jazz music in Iceland while also having the option to study classical music in the same school.

Mikael Máni

Mikael Mani

guitar

" data-original-title="" title="">Mikael Mani plays solo guitar, an Icelandic classic called "Tv?r Stj?rnur."

Silva & Steini

Silva & Steini performing "If It Was."

Some of the initial teachers at the music school had studied jazz in the USA. Therefore, it can be concluded that American jazz influenced the Icelandic jazz scene to begin with, largely due to the school's teaching. But Icelandic jazz has also been influenced by various other musical styles like Icelandic folk songs, and classical lied. Over the decades, there has indeed been an overlap between the classical, jazz, and pop music scenes due to the small music community, leading to influences from classical and popular music on Icelandic jazz musicians.

Sigmar Matthiasson Band

Bassist

Sigmar Matthíasson

bass
b.1987

" data-original-title="" title="">Sigmar Matthíasson and his band playing a mix of Balkan and Arabic folk music.

?skar Gu?jónsson & Skúli Sverrisson

Bassist Skúli Sverrison and saxophonist ?skar Gu?jónsson play "Fragments" from their second album.

Furthermore, over the last decades many artists have studied in different parts of the world. Often in Scandinavian countries, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Germany. Artists frequently invite their international colleagues to participate in collaborative projects. So Icelandic jazz has therefore become quite diversified, a melting pot of many currents and trends, leading to the formation of a unique sound and identity.

Sigur?ur Flosason & Cathrine Legardh

Singer

Cathrine Legardh

vocals
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Cathrine Legardh (DK) and saxophonist Sigur?ur Flosason (IS) collaborating

Tómas R. Einarsson

"Havana"

The local jazz scene is mostly centered around the capital city, Reykjavík. Annually in August, there is the Reykjavík Jazz Festival with international and local acts. In May, there is Jazz?orpi? in the nearby town of Gar?ab?r, which has been very successful over the last couple of years, focusing on local artists. Venues that host jazz events for most of the year are Múlinn Jazzclub, Jazz í Djúpinu, and every Monday, there is a jam session at the restaurant Le Kock called Mánudjass. There are also a handful of other venues that occasionally offer jazz. Furthermore, there are music festivals around the country, especially during the summer, where there are opportunities to listen to jazz music as well as classical and pop music. The restaurant Jómfrúin has offered jazz in its outside area every Saturday during the summer for the past 30 years and every summer there is Jazz undir Fj?llum (Jazz under the Mountains festival) at Skógar Museum, a historical museum.

Tumi ?rnason & Magnús Trygvason Eliassen

This creative free-improv duo performs live at Mengi in Reykjavik.

Stína ?gústsdóttir

Singer Stína ?gústsdóttir and her trio cover "Birthday" by the Sugarcubes in Tjarnarbíó Reykjavík.

Icelandic artists have the opportunity to apply for a temporary artist's salary. Also, Iceland Music office offers travel grants for artists who plan on touring abroad. There are also more grant options related to music creation and performance. These funding options provide sustainability for the jazz scene, at least to some extent. When it comes to awards and prizes, there are not many that jazz musicians can acquire. But annually there is the Iceland Music Awards which awards in the jazz category.

Meraki Tríó

Meraki tríó from Reykjavík Iceland performing an original composition at Freyjujazz.

Marína ?sk

Some Icelandic jazz musicians have gained international recognition, frequently performing in Europe and beyond. Among the most notable are the jazz-fusion band Mezzoforte who gained international recognition for their 1983 hit "Garden Party." The trio, led by pianist Sunna Gunnlaugs who studied in New York, pianist/vocalist Anna Gréta who is on a contract with ACT Music, the Ingi Bjarni trio and Nordic quintet of the pianist, and the magical quartet ADHD. And then, of course, Laufey has made a significant impact. Other key figures in the Icelandic jazz and improv scene include saxophonist Sigur?ur Flosason, guitarist Hilmar Jensson, and bassist Skúli Sverrisson. These artists are highly sought after both locally and internationally, often engaging in foreign collaborative projects.

Leifur Gunnarsson

"Flugfer? á nornakústinum" (Flight on the Witches Broom).

Haukur Gr?ndal

Byzantine Silhouette, live performance in Harpa in 2015.

Up-and-coming musicians expected to perform on the international stage soon include guitarist Mikael Máni, who recently signed with ACT Music, and electric bassist Ingibj?rg Elsa Turchi, whose album "Meliae" was nominated for the Nordic Music Prize in 2021. Bassist Freysteinn Gíslason is known for his creative music, while Sigmar Matthíasson blends jazz and world music. The avant-garde duo of saxophonist 9 Tumi ?rnason and drummer Magnús Trygvason Eliassen is also gaining attention; Magnús is also a member of ADHD and the inventive trio hist og, along with guitarist Róberta Andersen and trumpetist Eiríkur Orri ?lafsson. The vocal duo Silva & Steini has found success on platforms like Spotify and YouTube, and vocalists Marína ?sk and Rebekka Bl?ndal are also making names for themselves through frequent performances in Iceland.

?sgeir ?sgeirsson

"Stó? ég úti í tunglsljósi," live performance, from the album Persian Path (2022).

Rebekka Bl?ndal

"Hva? ?ú vilt."

There are also subcategories within the small jazz scene that are flourishing. Currently, Afro/Cuban and Latin music are popular, with bassist

Tómas R. Einarsson

bass
b.1953

" data-original-title="" title="">Tómas R. Einarsson being the main force for the last few decades. The band Los Bomboneros, led by guitarist Daníel Helgason and trombonist and arranger Sigrún Kristbj?rg Jónsdóttir, has gained attention with lively stage performances. Additionally, there is a small group of jazz educated musicians that play jazz manouche and Balkan music, with guitarist Gunnar Hilmarsson and clarinetist

Haukur Grondal

saxophone
b.1975

" data-original-title="" title="">Haukur Grondal leading the way.

For the past two years, a children's jazz festival called Barnajazz has been taking place in Mosfellsb?r, which is near Reykjavík. The festival offers workshops where kids can learn improvisation and participate in jazz performances. Some jazz shows have also been specifically designed for children. For instance, bassist Leifur Gunnarsson has developed a jazz program with a Halloween theme for kids. Additionally, saxophonist Haukur Gr?ndal recently released a book in collaboration with Reykjavík's Big Band, which explores the fate of the wolf from Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf."

It is impossible to cover the scope of Icelandic jazz and its history in a short article like this one but feel free to share your Icelandic jazz story or video in the comments section below.

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