Anna S. Þorvaldsdóttir facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Anna Thorvaldsdottir
Nordic Council Music Prize 2012
Background information
Native name	Anna Sigríður Þorvaldsdóttir
Born	July 11, 1977 Iceland
Occupation(s)	Composer
Associated acts	Iceland Symphony Orchestra

Anna Thorvaldsdottir (born July 11, 1977) is a famous composer from Iceland. Many people think she is one of Iceland's best composers. In 2012, she won the important Nordic Council Music Prize. Her music is played often in Europe and the United States. She gets many ideas for her music from nature and landscapes.

Early Life and Learning

When Anna was young, she learned to play the cello. She also started writing music at an early age. She studied how to compose music at the Iceland Academy of the Arts. Later, she went to the University of California, San Diego, where she earned her master's and PhD degrees.

Anna's Music Career

Anna Thorvaldsdottir has been asked to write music by many top orchestras and music groups. These include the Berliner Philharmoniker, New York Philharmonic, and Los Angeles Philharmonic. Other groups like the Orchestre de Paris and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra have also asked her to compose for them. She has also created music for big events like the BBC Proms and Carnegie Hall.

Her music has been featured in special concerts around the world. These concerts, which focus only on her work, have been held at places like Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art and Lincoln Center in New York City. She has also given talks and presentations at many famous universities. These include Stanford, Columbia, and the Royal Academy of Music in London.

Currently, Anna Thorvaldsdottir is the composer-in-residence for the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. This means she works closely with them to create new music. She lives in Surrey, UK, which is close to London.

Famous Orchestral Works

Anna Thorvaldsdottir has written several important pieces for orchestras. Here are some of her most well-known works:

• Dreaming (2008): This piece helped Anna win the 2012 Nordic Council Music Prize. The Iceland Symphony Orchestra first played it in 2010.
• AERIALITY (2011): This work helped American orchestras become very interested in Anna's music. It was chosen as one of the top recordings in 2014 by music critics.
• METACOSMOS (2017): The New York Philharmonic asked Anna to write this piece. It was first played in 2018. This work helped show that she is a very special and strong voice in music today.
• AIŌN (2018): This piece was first played in Sweden by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra in 2019. It was later played in the U.S. in 2022.
• CATAMORPHOSIS (2020): The Berlin Philharmonic first played this music in 2021. It also won the UK's Ivors Composer Award in 2021 for large-scale music.
• ARCHORA (2022): This piece was asked for by the BBC Proms. The BBC Philharmonic first played it in London in 2022.

Awards and Special Recognitions

Anna Thorvaldsdottir has received many awards for her amazing music:

• In 2021, her work CATAMORPHOSIS won the UK's Ivors Composer Award for Large Scale Composition.
• She received the Lincoln Center’s Emerging Artist Award and Martin E. Segal Award in 2018.
• In 2015, the New York Philharmonic chose her as their Kravis Emerging Composer. This honor included a $50,000 prize and a request to write a new piece for the orchestra.
• Anna Thorvaldsdottir won the 2012 Nordic Council Music Prize for her orchestral work Dreaming. This piece was part of her album Rhízōma.

Selected Works

Anna Thorvaldsdottir has created many different types of musical works.

Orchestral Music

• ARCHORA (2022)
• CATAMORPHOSIS (2020)
• AIŌN (2018)
• METACOSMOS (2017)
• AERIALITY (2011)
• Dreaming (2008)

Chamber Music

• Enigma (2019), for string quartet (four string instruments)
• Spectra (2017), for violin, viola, and cello
• Illumine (2016), for string octet (eight string instruments)
• Aequilibria (2014), for a large group of musicians
• In the Light of Air (2014), for percussion, harp, piano, viola, cello, and electronics
• Ró (2013), for bass flute, bass clarinet, percussion, piano, two violins, viola, cello
• aura (2011), for three percussion players
• Hrím (2010), for a large group of musicians

Choral Music

• Ad Genua (2016), for choir and five string instruments
• Heyr þú oss himnum á (2005)
• Hey mig mín sál (2003)

Selected Recordings

Here are some of the albums featuring Anna Thorvaldsdottir's music:

• Aerial (2022)
• ENIGMA (2021)
• Rhizoma (2020)
• AEQUA (2018)
• In the Light of Air (2015)

Images for kids

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  Anna Thorvaldsdottir receiving the Nordic Council Music Prize in 2012.

See Also

• List of Icelandic composers