“By harnessing complete control over his soundworld, Sigurdsson possesses the power to weild darkness into a singularly mesmerising art”. —Tom Huizenga, NPR Music
“…one of contemporary music’s most gifted and innovative composers”
— Fractured Air
“Sigurðsson creates an evocative, vividly picturesque narrative”
— San Francisco Classical Voice
Composer and producer VALGEIR SIRGURÐSSON is known for his immersive sound-world, often blurring the lines between contemporary classical writing and electronic production. An explorer of implicit sound, he composes for film, visual media and stage, as well as being active as a composer of concert works and opera, and as a performing musician. He has written 3 chamber operas, most recently We Are in Time, which was commissioned by The Scottish Ensemble’s to commemorate their 50th anniversary year.
Recent film work includes Grímur Hákonarson’s The County, and An Acceptable Loss, a political thriller by Joe Chappell starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Tika Sumpter. Valgeir’s scores for the environmental documentary Dreamland and Reykjavík City Theatre’s production of Medea were nominated for best score at the EDDA Icelandic Film Awards, and the Iceland Theatre Awards, respectively. Valgeir’s 4th LP DISSONANCE won ‘Album of The Year’ at the 2018 Iceland Music Awards. And Dust a piece for violin and electronics composed for Valgeir’s close collaborator, the British violinist Daniel Pioro, received a special jury prize at the International Rostrum of Composers in 2019.
At Greenhouse Recording Studios, Reykjavík which he founded in 1997, Valgeir has been a prolific collaborator with artists from all over the world, including the likes of Björk, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Feist, Tim Hecker, Anohni, CocoRosie, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Víkingur Ólafsson and many others, as producer, engineer and/or arranger.
Valgeir has performed his work internationally at festivals, concert halls and clubs, and The New York Times named Dissonance Live among the top shows of the 2017 Sónar Barcelona Festival. He is the artistic director of the record label and collective Bedroom Community which he founded with composers Nico Muhly and Ben Frost in 2005.
Valgeir’s music is published by Faber Music Ltd, and his recordings are released on Bedroom Community.
His name contains the Icelandic character Ð (ð) and should alternatively be spelled “Sigurdsson”.
“Long before there were any Valgeir Sigurðsson albums in the world, many records bore the mark of his masterful production and engineering. […] Sigurðsson owns Greenhouse Studios in Reykjavik, which is also his home. He finds it important to share space and connect with the musicians who record there. He serves as producer, mixer, engineer, programmer, and composer for artists who record there. […]
Greenhouse Studios is also the nerve center for artists on the Bedroom Community label that Sigurðsson started in 2006. The Bedroom Community roster is a tiny but eclectic grouping of artists, all of whom Sigurðsson works with intimately. The label has fostered the careers of such critically acclaimed musicians as Nico Muhly, Ben Frost, and Sam Amidon. […]
Though Sigurðsson’s genius as a producer/engineer is staggering, the incredible depth of his vision best emerges in his own music. Whether he is crafting solo albums or writing commissioned pieces for orchestras, his works are all as carefully considered as they are deeply felt.”
Drowned in Sound – Erin Lyndal Martin
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“Dissonance embodies, almost by definition, the idea of things falling apart, a feeling of unrest, of issues unresolved, of disagreement. Sigurðsson offers that and more over the course of three symphonic works that are by turns dense and bleak yet magisterial. […]
Sigurðsson applies his engineer credentials […] to the way he composes, and how he meticulously records the Reykjavik Sinfonia. He divides the orchestra up section by section — even instrument by instrument — and records the parts separately; then, like a jigsaw puzzle, puts it all back together in the studio.
With this technique, one could argue Sigurðsson actually conquers the unresolved unrest of dissonance. By harnessing complete control over his soundworld (like Goya did in oils with his disturbing “Black Paintings“), Sigurðsson possesses the power to wield darkness into a singularly mesmerizing art.”
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