News
03.03.2026
Conference in Reykjavík, Iceland, 9–10 October, 2026
The Call for Papers for the conference “Musical Modernism in a Global Perspective” is now open. The conference will take place in Reykjavík, Iceland on 9 and 10 October 2026, at the Reykjavík Academy (Hafnarstræti 5, Reykjavík).
The conference aims to explore the notion of musical modernism through a wide lens, including geography, musical style, aesthetics, reception, politics, transmission, and institutionalization. Studies of modernist traditions in countries or cultures that might be regarded as “peripheral” are particularly welcomed, as are studies that offer new perspectives on modernism in areas already well represented in musicological scholarship. Particular attention will be placed on the period ca. 1945–1980, although contributions outside of this time frame are also welcome.
The conference is organized by the Reykjavík Academy, with funding from the Icelandic Research Fund, and is open to ALL scholars, students, and individuals interested in the topic. In conjunction with the conference, the music festival ErkiTíð will take place, devoted to music by some of Iceland’s leading modernist composers.
We invite interested participants to submit a paper proposal (max. 300 words), accompanied by a short biographical note (max. 100 words) by 25 May to: [email protected]. Each lecture will be 20 minutes + 10 minutes of discussion. Applicants will be notified by 15 June.
Organizing committee:
Árni Heimir Ingólfsson, Helgi Rafn Ingvarsson, Tui Hirv, Tinna Þorsteinsdóttir.
This conference is part of the research project “Modernism in Icelandic Music,” see: https://akademia.is/mim/
05.03.2025
In April 2025, Árni Heimir Ingólfsson, the project’s Principal Investigator, will give a series of lectures in Tokyo, Japan, including a lecture at Waseda University on the influence on Japanese music on Icelandic modernist scores in the 1970s. These include Atli Heimir Sveinsson’s Flute Concerto, Xanties for flute and piano, and Japanese Poems for mixed choir and guitar, as well as Þorkell Sigurbjörnsson’s Kalais for solo flute. The lecture is sponsored by the Japanese Society for Musicology. Ingólfsson’s stay in Japan will also include meetings with local musicians and musicologists, in an attempt to examine more closely the influence of Japanese music and “orientalism” in general in Icelandic modernist music, particularly during the 1970s.
05.03.2025
Árni Heimir Ingólfsson presented a lecture titled “Creating Musical Modernism in Mid-Twentieth Century Iceland” at the annual meeting of the Royal Musical Association (London, September 2024), and the annual meeting of the American Musicological Society (Chicago, November 2024).
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