BENNI HEMM HEMM, ROBERTS AND THE REYKJAVIK WIND ENSEMBLE
Icelandic and Scots are woven together in this brand new piece
Benni Hemm Hemm, Alasdair Roberts and The Reykjavík Wind Ensemble
Icelandic and Scots are woven together in this brand new piece by Benni Hemm Hemm. The Reykjavík Wind Ensemble sneaks in between words, occasionally taking control and blowing the roof off. Conducted by Tryggvi M. Baldvinsson.
Another performance in Akureyri as part of AIM Festival June 5 at 3 pm.
Ryk á Book is an hour long piece in 11 parts by Benedikt H. Hermannsson. Icelandic and Scots are woven together, making up a language which sounds familiar yet conveys no obvious understandable meaning. The two singers, Benedikt H. Hermannsson and Alasdair Roberts, sing very personal words in their native languages – at times they morph each other out, at others they help each other and magnify the meaning of the words. The Reykjavík Wind Ensemble is a stable ground under the songs, sneaking in between words and occasionally taking control and blowing the roof off.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Benni Hemm Hemm
Benni Hemm Hemm is the band of Benedikt H. Hermannson. He writes the band´s songs and produces the band´s recordings. The band is an organism that is hard to explain. Its members are in total around 300. At shows the size of the band is usually somewhere from 3 to 40.
Benni Hemm Hemm has performed in Tokyo, St. Gallen, Amsterdam, Los Angeles, Höfn á Hornafirði, Seyðisfjörður, Portland, Húsavík, Ísafjörður, Kyoto, Houston, Austin, Dresden, Seattle, Stokkseyri, Oslo, Berlin, Brighton, Cleveland, Stockholm, Paris, Washington DC, Gothenburg, Hamburg, Diksmuide, Vienna, Copenhagen, London, New York, Rostock, Philadelphia, Frankfurt, Wilmington, Hannover, Köln, Atlanta, Phoenix, Akureyri, San Francisco, Malmö, Minneapolis, Chicago, Hoboken, Siglufjörður and Boston.
In September 2005 the Benni Hemm Hemm album was released in Iceland, on Smákökurnar. In early 2006 the album was released in Japan (P-Vine )and in Europe and the US (Morr Music). In spring 2006 work started for Kajak. The album was written in a very short time, and recorded in June. The album was released in Iceland in November, on Smákökurnar. Early 2007 Kajak was released in Europe and in the US in May (Morr Music).
Alasdair Roberts is a Scottish folk singer, guitarist and writer of songs. Active for the past 15 years in Glasgow, he releases records on the Chicago based Drag City label and has collaborated widely with musicians from all kinds of backgrounds. In 2010 he´ll release a collection of traditional ballads entitled Too long in this condition and is currently writing new material.
The Reykjavik Wind Ensemble was founded in 1999 by Kjartan Óskarsson, Tryggvi M. Baldvinsson and other enthusiasts of developing a culture for concert band music in Iceland. One of the main goals of the Band is to foster innovation in this type of music and has premiered various pieces, many of which specially written for the ensamble. The composers who have written for the Reykjavík Wind Ensemble are amongst others: Páll Pampichler Pálsson, Eirík ur Árni Sigtryggsson, Tryggvi M. Baldvinsson, Áki Ásgeirsson, Ingi Garðar Erlendsson, Guðni Franzson, Hilmar Jensson og Benedikt Hermann Hermannsson. The Reykjavík Wind Ensemble‘s member are young musicians and the artistic director from the beginning has been Kjartan Óskarsson.
- If it's too loud, you're too old! (A quote from the ensemble's Facebook Page, Nov 2009.)
Links:
http://www.alasdairroberts.com/