Christ­mas Con­cert with Anne Sofie von Ot­ter

ANNE SOFIE VON OTTER MAKES HER HARPA DEBUT

World-renowned opera singer Anne Sofie von Otter will take to the stage at Harpa for the first time on Thursday evening, 10 December. She will be joined by pianist Bengt Forsberg, guitarist Fabian Fredriksson, with soprano Álfheiður Erla Guðmundsdóttir appearing as a special guest.

The concert promises a truly festive atmosphere, featuring traditional Christmas music alongside exquisite art songs and music spanning different periods, including works by Franz Schubert, Hugo Wolf, Jean Sibelius, J. S. Bach, Gabriel Fauré, Maurice Ravel, Arvo Pärt and others.

The concert also marks the launch of Ópus Reykjavík, a new artistic event series founded by Álfheiður Erla Guðmundsdóttir, which aims, among other things, to foster creative collaborations between outstanding international artists and Iceland’s artistic community. The concert is presented jointly by Ópus Reykjavík and Harpa.

The concert will take place in Norðurljós, with limited seating available.

TICKETS GO ON SALE TUESDAY, 1 SEPTEMBER AT 10:00.

Renowned for her unparalleled and multi award-winning discography, mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter’s creative versatility has seen her work with legendary artists ranging from the late greats of Carlos Kleiber, Claudio Abbado and Giuseppe Sinopoli to Elvis Costello, Brad Mehldau and Rufus Wainwright.

An ever-evolving repertoire has played a key role in sustaining Swedish-born von Otter’s international profile, from an early position as the superlative Octavian (Der Rosenkavalier) of her generation, to her acclaimed creation of Leonora in the world premiere of Thomas Adès’ The Exterminating Angel at Salzburger Festspiele and Royal Ballet & Opera. Performance highlights in later seasons include as Madame de Croissy in Oliver Py’s staging of Dialogues des Carmélites at Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, as Marcellina (Le nozze di Figaro) in Christof Loy’s production at Bayerische Staatsoper, and as L’Opinion Publique (Orphée aux Enfers) in Barrie Kosky’s staging at Salzburger Festspiele. Adding further to an already impressive catalogue of opera repertoire, more recently there have been role debuts as the Countess (Pique Dame) at La Monnaie under Nathalie Stutzmann and Adelaide (Arabella) at Teatro Real under David Afkham.

Equally recognised as a concert and recital singer of exceptional gifts, von Otter’s career has taken her around the globe as a regular presence on the world’s most prestigious stages excelling in a diverse repertoire including works by Mahler, Berlioz, Bach and Kurt Weill, and her expansive Lieder recordings range from classics by Schubert, Schumann, Wolf and Mahler, through lesser-known compilations from Cécile Chaminade, Korngold, Peterson-Bergen and Stenhammar.

Anne Sofie von Otter is one of today’s most recorded artists with an incomparable catalogue built across a career now spanning more than four decades at the top of her profession. A lengthy and exclusive relationship with Deutsche Grammophon produced a wealth of acclaimed recordings including the GRAMMY-winning Mahler: Des Knaben Wunderhorn with Claudio Abbado, Handel’s Ariodante, Giulio Cesare and Hercules with Marc Minkowski and a collaboration with pop legend Elvis Costello on For the Stars. On Naïve Classique, her double CD of Mélodies and Chansons, Douce France, received the 2015 Grammy Award for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album. von Otter immortalized many of her operatic characters on disc: Octavian with Bernard Haitink and the Staatskapelle Dresden and on DVD with Wiener Staatsoper under Carlos Kleiber; Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro) under James Levine; La clemenza di Tito and Orfeo ed Euridice under Sir John Eliot Gardiner; and Ariadne auf Naxos under Giuseppe Sinopoli. Her latest album Berlin! Berlin! Berlin! Kabarett und Exil is an eclectic recital of musical numbers spanning the music of 1920s to 1940s Germany in collaboration with the Salon Orchestra of the Komische Oper Berlin and Adam Benzwi is released on BIS.

An award-winning soprano and visual artist, Álfheiður was named Singer of the Year in the Classical and Contemporary Music category at the 2021 Icelandic Music Awards. A former ensemble member of Theater Basel and a 2025/26 ECHO Rising Star, she has appeared at leading European opera houses and concert halls including Staatsoper Berlin, Theater Basel, the Elbphilharmonie, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam and the Philharmonie de Paris. She recently made a major international breakthrough in contemporary opera with her acclaimed portrayal of the title role in Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland, presented in its Austrian premiere in Vienna, where her performance was widely praised for its dramatic precision and vocal virtuosity. This season she continues her close engagement with new music through two major staged world premieres: Hania Rani’s If I Do Not Return and Bryce Dessner’s Herakles Mad, the later directed by Icelandic visual artist Ragnar Kjartansson, one of the country’s most internationally recognised contemporary artists.

“Anne Sofie has been a role model for me ever since I began studying singing. Her curiosity, sincerity and the beauty of her voice have had a profound influence on me and shaped me as both a singer and an artist. To now have the opportunity to welcome her to Reykjavík and sing alongside her therefore holds a very special meaning for me. I could not imagine a better beginning for Ópus Reykjavík.”

— Álfheiður Erla Guðmundsdóttir

Bengt Forsberg has long been one of the most highly regarded and sought-after pianists of his generation and has enjoyed a fruitful artistic partnership with Anne Sofie von Otter spanning several decades. Together they have recorded numerous acclaimed albums that have attracted international attention and received a wealth of awards and honours, including celebrated recordings of songs by Edvard Grieg, Jean Sibelius and Franz Schubert, among many others.

Forsberg’s repertoire is exceptionally broad, and he has devoted particular attention to music by forgotten and lesser-known masters of the past. His repertoire includes solo piano works by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Charles-Valentin Alkan, Emmanuel Chabrier and Kaikhosru Sorabji, while his recordings also feature works by composers including Godard, Boëllmann, Koechlin, Pierné and Alfvén.

He has collaborated with numerous artists in art song and chamber music, most notably, in addition to Anne Sofie von Otter, violinist Nils-Erik Sparf and cellist Mats Lidström.

Promoter

Harpa