Find music by

Sign up for our newsletter




IX. Ásgarðr, Askr ok Embla, Miðgarðr (Asgard, Ash and Embla, Midgard)


ComposerLeifs, Jón
TenorGuðbjörnsson, Gunnar
Bass-baritoneKristinsson, Bjarni Thor
ChoirSchola Cantorum
OrchestraIceland Symphony Orchestra
ConductorBäumer, Hermann

Few composers have been as consistently preoccupied with their national origins as Jón Leifs, who only found his calling as a composer when he encountered a collection of Icelandic folk music. From the very beginning, Iceland, its music and myths, its landscape and climate furnished him with the material for almost all of his compositions. And from the very beginning Leifs knew that he wanted to create a great oratorio using texts from the Edda, Iceland's national treasure. He started work on the libretto in 1930, and soon decided that the theme of the first section would be The Creation of the World. It wasn't until 1935, however, that he found himself in a position to start composing the music of Edda I, completing it in 1939. Largely due to the highly difficult choral writing, the work was never performed in its entirety during Leifs’ lifetime. Indeed the first complete performance only took place in 2006, in conjunction with the recording of the present disc.
With Icelandic choir Schola Cantorum. Vocal soloists: Gunnar Gydbjörnsson, tenor and Bjarni Thor Kristinsson, bass-baritone.
Classics Today 10/10, highest rating; Gramophone: outstanding; International Record Review: outstanding.
 
  • STUDIO QUALITY
    File formats included in STUDIO QUALITY
    • FLAC 24-bit Stereo
    • FLAC 24-bit Surround 5.0
    • FLAC 16-bit Stereo
    • MP3 Stereo
  • CD QUALITY | MP3
    File formats included in CD QUALITY | MP3
    • FLAC 16-bit Stereo
    • MP3 Stereo
 
Featured on this album
Jón Leifs - Edda, Part I
BIS1350
More info about this album
 
Daily Deal
Top downloads
eClassical.com is a completely virtual record label and a secure online store open 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Customers and visitors can download classical music in high quality FLAC or MP3 and find out more about classical music.

Start page    24 Bit FAQ    Assistance    About eClassical    Classical News