【Musician】Ólafur Arnalds

Ólafur Arnalds’ music has accompanied me through many unsteady times, both the darkest and the brightest, so it’s not a stretch to call him my life mentor. His music teaches me what life is and how to get through the ups and downs of my life.

I discovered his music through a live-stream a few years ago with the album called “Found Songs”. It’s a collection of his one-day-one-song composition, without overediting, Arnald posted his compositions online. A few weeks later, he released this “Found Songs” album and captured people’s ears and hearts immediately. From then on, I completely fell for his music and never let myself go from his music world which delicately balances between indie rock and classical.

“Ljósið” from Found Songs is the only song which can explain how life goes on with simplified piano and violin melody forthrightly taking you into the flow of life. “Ljósið” means “light” in the Icelandic language. Thank you for being the lighthouse in my life through your soothing.

I’ve always admired Iceland for being so open-minded of different cultures and music genres. For them, it seems very normal to embrace each others differences and to bring it into their own style.

Following other Iceland pioneer bands like Sigur Rós and Múm, Arnalds creates a similarly calming atmosphere but with his own unique compositional way on classical piano, collocating with his cosmical mind. Sometimes hearing orchestral instruments pop out enthusiastically, or other times only piano melodies interwoven in the air, interrupting your millions of thoughts.

In his new album “Chopin Project”, he collaborated with another Icelandic pianist extraordinaire, Alice Sara Ott. They aren’t aiming for classical music like Chopin’s composition,too refined to approach for normal listeners; instead, they want it to be accessible for you and me. That’s why they explored Reykjavik together, searching for vintage recording equipment and venues in which they could create a different recording atmosphere instead of the normal studio setup.

In “Chopin Project”, if you expect comforting classical music, you will still find your own piece of world to enjoy of Arnalds and Ott’s profound performance skills; even if you are not a fan of classical music, you will still be surprised by the details they put into Chopin Project.They build a completely different sound field in the same room which make you feel closer to instrumental sounds and also more intimate to the music they perform for you.

No matter where you are in the enormous world, music will always be there watching you, soothing you with its lightest caress.

Don’t forget to listen to Ólafur Arnalds’ new and old albums!