Ólöf Helga Arnalds was born in Reykjavík in 1980. She is currently studying Composition and New Media at the Iceland Academy of the Arts. She is now touring with the Icelandic band, Mum playing viola, xylophone, guitar and singing. For Ultrasound 2003 she will present a video composition and perform her own music live.

The video composition, Solitary Sounds [Eins manns hljod] was first performed at a concert in the Reykjavík Art Gallery earlier this year. The inspiration for the piece is sought in the simplicity, much exploited but fascinating possibility available through sound recording - that of being able to accompany oneself.

The visual part of the piece [many screen images showing the same person on one giant screen] aims at making the recording of music played by one and the same person as 'live' as possible and to bring out as many of the hazards that a musician may experience on stage, without the musician performing in person. The recordings were made in a recording studio and each individual recording is in itself continous and complete regarding both sound and image. The recordings were not edited in any way.

The musicians in this one man band are variably proficient on their different instruments and the mood of the moment is also variable. There are nine in all: two violins, two violas, three guitars, one cello and one double-bass. They also, despite their lack of experience, have to control all the equipment used for both the audio and visual parts. They listen through headphones to instructions giving cues and information about when a new section starts.

Each musician in turn also hears what has already been recorded. Thus it can be said that the progression is pre-planned to a certain extent, as is the basic musical foundation but it is up to the individual musician to improvise.

back to top