A Víkingur Ólafsson Playlist

Backstage at the Harpa Concert Hall in Reykjavik, a mens’ choir is rehearsing. It’s their 100th anniversary, and a group of craggy old men in suits are talking to Víkingur Ólafsson like he’s a favored son-in-law, back for one of his many regular visits.Ólafsson has a lot on his plate right now. Last week, he signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Gramophon. He’ll premiere a Haukur Tómasson Piano Concerto at the new Elbphilharmonie Hamburg in February, then at the Los Angeles Philharmonic in April. Both venues are putting on festivals of Icelandic music. In that same spirit, we asked Ólafsson to put together a playlist from his home. Here is his introduction:  “The task of creating a playlist around the theme of Iceland is daunting: it would be easy to put one together that would go on for hours. But I wanted to create something that could actually be listened to in one sitting. Here is some of my favorite music from the 64th parallel north.”