Celebrating Icelandic Folk at Nordic Folk Alliance

The 2nd instillation of Nordic Folk Alliance took place in Gothenburg earlier this month. Three Icelandic artists performed at this showcase festival for Nordic folk artists: Svavar Knútur, Blood Harmony and Umbra.

You can listen to all three on our Iceland Music Folk playlist included here. The artists stole the hearts of Nordic colleagues and international delegates and made us proud to be able to say these represent the best of Icelandic Folk Music.

See the photos here, taken by the talented Ann-Charlotte Rugfelt

Svavar Knútur moved the audience between tears and laughter during his set, claiming that Iceland only has “two seasons: winter… and disappointment”, between heartfelt songs and an Icelandic singalong.

Attending a showcase festival like Nordic Folk Alliance is not just about performing – Lilja Dögg Gunnarsdóttir, lead singer and percussionist from Umbra Ensemble, is making international connections here during a networking event.

On a panel on ‘Connecting Cultures’ we had both Svavar Knútur and Ösp Eldjárn from Blood Harmony on the panel to talk about Global Music Match but both artists have participated in the award winning programme – but last year it received the WOMEX 2021 Professional Excellence Award.

We were delighted to be on the ground, and you can see a reel of highlights on our Instagram profile >>

Our thanks to NOMEX, The City of Gothenburg and all the great partners who made this event possible.

Iceland Music