Cantoque Ensemble sings Hjálmar H. Ragnarsson

Cantoque sings Hjálmar H. Ragnarsson / Dark music days in Hallgrímskirkja
Sunday January 26th at 17 hrs.
Cantoque ensemble
Steinar Logi Helgason conductor
Tickets at Hallgrímskirkja and on tix.is
Admission ISK 3.900

Cantoque Ensemble’s concert at the 2025 Dark Music Days festival is dedicated to the choral music of Hjálmar H. Ragnarsson. The ensemble will perform Hjálmar’s ambitious Mass from 1989, along with the premiere of a new work composed specifically for the choir in honor of the concert. It is also noted that before the performance, Hjálmar will discuss the works featured in the program and his career in general with the festival curators.

Concert notes:
The works performed today date primarily from the 1980s, with the exception of the new choral piece set to a poem by Snorri Hjartarson, composed late last year and premiered here today. During this period, I was active in choral conducting, leading, among others, the University Choir for several years, and later the vocal ensemble Hljómeyki. The oldest piece on the program, Maríusonur mér er kalt (Son of Mary, I Am Cold), was originally written for the University Choir, which performed it extensively in its concerts. I also arranged several Icelandic folk songs for the choir, three of which are featured on today’s program.

The poetry of Stefán Hörður Grímsson has been a constant companion of mine since my school days, when I first encountered his poetry collection Svartálfadans (Dance of the Dark Elves). Over the years, I have composed vocal and choral works inspired by his poems. Today’s program includes Kvöldvísur um sumarmál (April Night Song), written in 1984 and premiered by the Hamrahlíð Choir at the 1987 Dark Music Days under the direction of Þorgerður Ingólfsdóttir. In this work, one can clearly detect the intimate relationship between words and music, a feature of many of my compositions.

The largest choral work from this period is my Mass in five movements, set to the traditional liturgical texts: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus – Benedictus, and Agnus Dei. Today, we will hear the first three movements. The Gloria was composed first, at the request of Marteinn H. Friðriksson for the Reykjavik Cathedral Choir, with the subsequent movements completed later. The work was premiered in its entirety by the vocal ensemble Hljómeyki at Skálholt in August 1989. At the time, the work garnered attention for its unconventional approach to these well-established texts. The Kyrie bears the heading “Energico” (with energy), the Gloria is marked “Mesto” (sadly, melancholic), and the Credo is labeled “Impetuoso” (with passion and vehemence).

The final piece on today’s program, Ave Maria, is based on a theme I composed for the stage production of Agnes of God, performed by the Reykjavik Theatre Company in 1985. A year later, I reworked the theme for mixed choir at the request of Hörður Áskelsson, conductor of the Hallgrímskirkja Mótettukórinn. The choir premiered Ave Maria in the spring of 1986 at their concert in Landakotskirkja. This motet is built largely on major and minor triads, harmonically connected by thirds, undoubtedly reflecting the influence of Jón Leifs, whose music I studied extensively during my postgraduate studies in the United States. Similarly, the opening piece on today’s programme, Maríusonur mér er kalt, carries this same tonal character.

Snorri Hjartarson is another poet whose work has stayed close to me since my youth. It felt natural to turn to his poetry when I was asked to compose a new work for today’s concert. The poem, titled Þjóðlag (Folk Song), provided the foundation, though the title was obviously unsuitable for a musical composition. Instead, I named the work after the opening line of the final stanza, Vakir vakir þrá mín (Awake, Awake My Longing). The poem is rich with nuance and color, lighting up the dark backdrop and its opaque meaning. The land, nature, and humanity tied to the same celestial locus: “... two stars burn bright...“     (HHR)

Cantoque Ensemble was founded from a Nordic collaboration with the baroque orchestras Höör Barock and Camerata Öresund with their concert being nominated for the Icelandic Music Awards as Musical Event of the Year 2017. The Cantoque Ensemble performed JS Bach's cantatas at the Summer Concert in Skálholt with the Bach Orchestra in Skálholt under the baton of the renowned conductor Andreas Spering. The choir has held numerous concerts with Icelandic folk songs and prides itself in performing new Icelandic music. Cantoque Ensemble collaborates with conductor Steinar Logi Helgason and recently performed JS Bach's Passion with the Baroque band Brák under his direction, as well as performing new Icelandic vocal music at the Summer Concert in Skálholt and at the Song Festival in Hafnarborg.

Cantoque Ensemble's recent projects include the continued collaboration with Camerata Öresund in 2021, but also the baroque ensemble Ensemble Nylandia from Sweden. The project took place in Iceland and Denmark, with the concert being televised to the baroque festival BarokkiKuopio in Finland. That concert was nominated as Musical Event of the Year at the Icelandic Music Awards. Cantoque also held a concert at Dark Music Days 2022, under Helgason's direction, where Icelandic composer Jón Nordal's choral music was at the forefront. The concert was highly praised by critics and concertgoers alike. In 2023, Cantoque began a collaboration with Ensemble Choeur3 and the artistic director Abélia Nordmann, who is based in Switzerland but works across borders to France and Germany. Together, the groups performed Frank Martin's well-known Mass for Double Choir along with Icelandic works. The programme was also performed at the final concert of the Song Festival in Hafnarborg in July 2023. In Switzerland, Cantoque also performed an all-Icelandic repertoire to introduce Icelandic choral works as well as holding a masterclass for conductors and choral singers in the Basel area.

Steinar Logi Helgason was born in 1990 and is educated as an organist, pianist and conductor. After studying piano in the Reykjavík College of music Steinar started studying the organ at the Music school of the National church of Iceland and later in the Iceland University of the Arts where he studied under organist Björn Steinar Sólbergsson and finished a Bachelor’s degree in Church music. Steinar furthered his studies in The Royal Danish Academy of music where he started a master’s degree in Church music under Hans Davidsson and later finishing a master’s degree in ensemble conducting. Steinar has performed widely as an organist, pianist and a conductor. Steinar took over the post of choir director in Hallgrímskirkja in August 2021 and is the founder and conductor of The Choir of Hallgrímskirkja.

Hjálmar H. Ragnarsson has been active as a composer in Iceland since his return in 1980 from studies in USA and the Netherlands. His work ranges from shorter solo compositions to longer symphonic works, from lieder and choral pieces to musicals and opera. He has also composed music for dance and theatre, as well as films. Hjálmar has written articles and essays on academic and cultural-political subjects, and has lectured on topics in culture, science, and the arts. His groundbreaking research on the music of Jón Leifs opened the way for worldwide recognition of Leifs’ music. Hjálmar has been active in cultural politics and has headed several artists’ associations. In 1998 he was appointed Rector of the newly-founded Iceland Academy of the Arts (now IUA), a position he was to hold for three five-year terms. Hjálmar lives in Kópavogur and Brussels.

HALLGRÍMSKIRKJA – YOUR PLACE IN REYKJAVÍK!