The libretto for "Gudrún's Fourth Song" is a new text created by combining related but disparate fragments from independent Edda poems, similar to a collage.
Performer Biography
The Caput Ensemble, formed in 1987 by young Icelandic musicians, is a significant force in Icelandic cultural life and active in the European new music scene, regularly supported by the Icelandic government and Reykjavik.
Historical Context
The Edda poems, a main branch of ancient Icelandic poetry, are largely preserved in a single manuscript called the Codex Regis, dating from around 1270.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Haukur Tómasson's "Gudrún's Fourth Song" is inspired by and based on the heroic poems of the old Icelandic Edda, with its libretto derived entirely from them.
Composer Biography
Haukur Tómasson, the composer, studied in Reykjavik, Cologne, Amsterdam, and San Diego, and has received numerous commissions and awards, including the Icelandic Music Award for "Gudrún's 4th Song."
Historical Context
The Edda poems are invaluable sources of information about ancient cosmogony and the world of legends, in addition to being literary masterpieces.
Compositional Technique
The stage version of "Gudrún's Fourth Song" used a recited text to link sung fragments from the heroic poems, improvised to create a consistent story, but these recitations are not included in this recording.
