Sigvaldi Kaldalóns (Stefánsson) (13 January 1881 – 28 July 1946)
was an
Icelandic composer and doctor.
Unlike the avant-garde composers of his day, he wrote in a traditional romantic style and composed many of Iceland's most famous and widely performed songs, many of which are now wrongly assumed to be folk songs.
His particular skill was in capturing the spirit of poems in his melodies,
making him Iceland's foremost lyric composer.
Since the end of 2016, his works have entered the public domain in Iceland.
Life
He was born in Garðastræti, Vaktarabær in the Grjóti neighbourhood of
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...
,
the son of Stefán Egilsson, a mason, and Sesselja Sigvaldadóttir, a midwife.
He attended the Reykjavík Latin School, matriculating in 1902 and gained a diploma in medicine in 1908 from the medical school in Reykjavík.
He then travelled to Denmark, where he graduated in Copenhagen.
On 16 September 1909 he married Karen Margrethe Thomsen (née Mengel), a Danish nurse.
Works
Kaldalóns wrote about 350 songs. Among his best-known compositions are:
* ''Ave María,'' to a poem by Indriði Einarsson (instrumental performance by Víkingur Ólafsso
available on YouTube
* ''Ísland ögrum skorið'' (''Iceland Deeply Carved'') to a poem by
Eggert Ólafsson
Eggert Ólafsson (1 December 1726 – 30 May 1768 (age 41)) was an Icelandic explorer, writer and conservator of the Icelandic language. He also worked to revive the Icelandic culture and economy.
Background
He was the son of a farmer from Svefn ...
(performanc
available on YouTube
* ''Á Sprengisandi'' (''Ride Hard Across the Sands'') to a poem by
Grímur Thomsen
Grímur Thomsen (May 15, 1820 – November 27, 1896), Icelandic poet and editor, was born in Bessastaðir in 1820. He was the son of Þorgrímur Tómasson, a goldsmith. In 1837, he went to the University of Copenhagen, where he studied law and ...
(performanc
available on YouTube
* ''Suðurnesjamenn'' (performanc
available on YouTube
* ''Svanasöngur á heiði'' (performanc
available on YouTube
* ''Heimir '' (performanc
available on YouTube
* ''Erla, góða Erla''
* ''Draumur hjarðsveinsins''
* ''Þú eina hjartans yndið mitt''
* ''Ég lít í anda liðna tíð''
References
1881 births
1946 deaths
Sigvaldi Kaldolons
Sigvaldi Kaldolons
{{Europe-composer-stub