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Sunday, March 29, 2026

Family concert: ReykjavíkBarokk
       Childrens Concert in Eldborg


Eldborg

15:00


Monday, March 30, 2026

Open masterclass
       Darina Ablogina, traverso

Fimmund

15:00


Tuesday, March 31, 2026

Lunchtime Concert

Hörpuhorn

13:00


Barokkbandið Brák and Cantoque Ensemble
       Opening Concert

Norðurljós

19:00

Ruby Hughes and Jonas Nordberg
       Amidst the Shades: English Song from the 16th and 17th Centuries

Norðurljós

20:30


Wednesday,  April 1, 2026

Lunchtime Concert

Hörpuhorn

13:00

Low Key Ensemble
      Bass, More Bass!

Norðurljós

17:30

Kyrja 
        Kyrja at the Crossroads of the Middle Ages: Josquin des Prez and Icelandic Folk Songs

Norðurljós

19:00

Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir, Darina Ablogina and Peter Croton
         Salons and Serenades: Chamber Music by Woman Composers

Norðurljós

20:30

Thursday, April 2, 2026

Dúó Stemma
         Childrens Concert

Kaldalón

11:00

Dúó Stemma
        Childrens Concert


Kaldalón

13:00

Christina Pluhar and L'Arpeggiata
        Alla Napoletana!

Norðurljós 

19:00



Kids Baroque in Eldborg - ReykjavíkBarokk

March 29, 15:00 - Eldborg


Kids Baroque in Harpa is a family concert where the chamber ensemble ReykjavíkBarokk performs a varied selection of music from the Baroque and Renaissance eras, joined by music students and choir singers from the capital area and South Iceland.
The concert features solo performances, ensemble pieces, and choral singing accompanied by the Krakkabarokk Festival Orchestra – a festive and inspiring occasion where the rich heritage of early music comes alive in the hands of talented young performers.

The Chamber Ensemble ReykjavíkBarokk with pupils from Tónskóli Sigursveins, Tónskóli Rangæinga, Tónlistarskóli Hafnarfjarðar, Hólabrekkuskóli, Fellaskóli, Tónlistarskóli Árnesinga, Tónskóli Þjóðkirkjunnar, Hvolsskóli and Drengjakór Reykjavíkur. 

This event is free.


Hádegistónleikar

March 31, 13:00 - Hörpuhorn


Featuring soprano María Konráðsdóttir, harpsichordist Aina Kalnciema and flutist Darina Ablogina.

This event is free.

Opening concert: Baroque ensemble Brák and choir Cantoque Ensemble

March 31, 19:00 - Norðurljós
Welcome to the opening concert of the Reykjavík Early Music Festival 2026. The baroque ensemble Brák and the choir Cantoque Ensemble join forces once again to perform works by Avison and Handel, interwoven with Icelandic folk songs.

The concert opens with a Concerto grosso by the English composer Charles Avison (1709–1770), which he based on a keyboard sonata by Domenico Scarlatti (1685–1757). This is followed by variations on Icelandic folk songs, marrying turf houses and toccatas. The final work on the program is George Frideric Handel’s (1685–1759) setting of Psalm 110, Dixit Dominus, which he composed in his early twenties while staying in Italy, where he became so wildly popular for his works that he was dubbed il caro Sassone — “the dear Saxon.”


Amidst the Shades: English Song from the 16th and 17th Centuries

March 31, 20:30 - Norðurljós
Soprano Ruby Hughes and lutenist Jonas Nordberg head to late Renaissance and Baroque England, performing songs by John Dowland, Henry Purcell, and Robert Johnson.

Their shared love of the quiet and intimate sound world of music from the Elizabethan age brought Ruby Hughes and Jonas Nordberg together. They have recorded an album in that spirit, to be released by the BIS label in the first weeks of 2026, with the concert program drawn from this recording. Also featured are songs by the contemporary composers Errollyn Wallen and Cheryl Frances-Hoad, written to excerpts from Shakespeare’s plays.


Hádegistónleikar
April 1, 13:00 - Hörpuhorn


Featuring violists Marie Stockmarr Becker and Natalia Duarte and harpist Sólveig Thoroddsen.

This event is free.


Bass, More Bass!
April 1, 17:30 - Norðurljós


Low Key Ensemble invites audiences on a journey into the domain of the basso continuo. We shall explore the deep and dark sound world of bass instruments, the modest and unassuming group of instruments that forms the foundation of Baroque music, while presenting rarely heard works, often in arrangements by the ensemble itself, for viola, cello, bass, lute, and harpsichord.

The program features Italian early Baroque music by Frescobaldi, French high Baroque by Couperin, Rameau, and Boismortier, and German high Baroque by the great Bach. We will hear solitary lute tones, vigorous harpsichord playing, a cello in the guise of a viola da gamba, and a viola in the guise of a cello. Perhaps a few folk songs will also find their way in. Whatever happens, our motto remains the same: More bass!


Kyrja at the Crossroads of the Middle Ages: Josquin des Prez and Icelandic Folk Songs
April 1, 19:00 - Norðurljós 


Although separated by an ocean, Iceland and mainland Europe are bound in spirit and in song, sharing ancient musical roots. The vocal ensemble Kyrja will explore the musical landscape of the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries in Iceland and beyond, performing ‘Missa Ave maris stella’ by Josquin des Prez (c. 1450–1521). The Mass was composed in Rome around 1490 and is regarded as one of the central works of Franco-Flemish polyphonic music. Interspersed between the movements of the Mass are Icelandic hymn tunes and tvísöngur, traditional Icelandic two-voice singing, from the 16th and 17th centuries.


Salons and Serenades: Chamber Music by Romantic Women Composers

April 1, 20:30 - Norðurljós
Soprano Herdís Anna Jónasdóttir, flautist Darina Ablogina, and guitarist Peter Croton perform works from the early Romantic period, some originally composed for, and others arranged for, flute and guitar. This instrumental combination was popular in its time as it was well suited to performance in private homes and in the salons of the social elite.

The performers have undertaken research into this repertoire and have brought to light the contributions of three women composers to music history: Maria Szymanowska (1789–1831), Emilia Giuliani-Guglielmi (1813–1850), and Catharina Josepha Pratten (1824–1895).

The program also includes works by Ferdinando Carulli (1770–1841), Johann Kaspar Mertz (1806–1856), Mauro Giuliani (1781–1829), and Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847).


Childrens Concert with Dúó Stemma

April 2, 11:00 and 13:00 -Kaldalón


Duo Stemma takes a playful and unconventional approach to Icelandic folk tunes from the time of the Baroque masters, performing on Iceland’s own “Baroque instruments” such as horse jawbones, stones, and seashells. The duo – violist Herdís Anna Jónsdóttir and percussionist Steef van Oosterhout – have for many years created engaging and educational music programs for young audiences.
They have performed for children in preschools and primary schools across Iceland, appeared in major concert halls including Harpa and Hof in Akureyri, and taken their music to young audiences in eight countries across Europe. In 2008, Duo Stemma received the Vorvindar award from the IBBY organization for their contribution to children’s culture in Iceland.

This event is free.

Alla Napoletana!
April 2, 19:00 - Norðurljós


Christina Pluhar, one of the world’s foremost interpreters of early music, will bring her ensemble L’Arpeggiata to the Reykjavík Early Music Festival in the week before Easter in 2026. She is bent on taking listeners on a beguiling journey through the streets and alleyways of Naples across the centuries. During our trek, we will encounter operatic hotheads seething like Mount Vesuvius, hear songs of love and frenzy, and lose ourselves in wild tarantellas. Be sure not to miss this rare and exceptional musical event.