HyperOrgan – Concert following the opening of Reykjavík Winter Lights Festival at Hallgrímskirkja

HyperOrgel
Concerts at Hallgrímskirkja immediately following the opening of Reykjavík Winter Lights Festival 2026

Thursday, February 5, 7:00–7:40 PM
Interactive musical works with computer-connected instruments
Tómas Manoury – premiére
Steinunn Harðardóttir – premiére
Jesper Pedersen – premiére
Áki Ásgeirsson – premiére

Friday, February 6, 3:00 PM
Open Lab at Veröld – House of Vigdís (Note: Not in Hallgrímskirkja)
Intelligent Instruments Lab: Discussions with composers, demonstrations of computer-controlled organ works.

Saturday, February 7 – Programme at Hallgrímskirkja
12:00–12:30 PM – Lunchtime Concert / Matinée
Örlygur Steinar Arnalds – r lego, 3’52’’
Yulia Vasileva – new work
Ronja Jóhansdóttir – premiére
Gunnar Andreas Kristinsson – premiére
Guðmundur Vignir Karlsson – premiére
Arnljótur Sigurðsson – premiére

1:00 PM – Hourly piece: Dettifoss

1:20–1:50 PM – Organ Technology & Composition Talk
North Hall, Hallgrímskirkja – moderated by Áki Ásgeirsson

2:00 PM – Hourly piece: Victor Shepardson and Julie Zhu

4:00 PM – Hourly piece: Svartþoka

5:00 PM – Hourly piece: Sveinn Ingi Reynisson

The Klais organ in Hallgrímskirkja was inaugurated in 1992. The organ has four manuals and pedalboard, 72 stops, and 5,275 pipes. It is 15 meters tall, weighs approximately 25 tons, and the largest pipes are about 10 meters high.

In 2013, a MIDI connection was added to the organ console located on the church floor. This made it possible to connect a computer to the organ and control it via computer or other controllers. MIDI is a simple communication standard for music and has been primarily used since 1983 to connect keyboards and synthesizers.

Computer-controlled instruments follow different principles than instruments played by human performers. The composer’s decisions regarding tempo, timing, and articulation are executed by the instrument without compromise. This allows for extreme precision, but also for intentional imprecision based on predefined parameters. Interactive organ music in dialogue with live performance is particularly well suited to a computer-controlled organ, as are complex algorithmic compositions and music created using machine learning. Computer control thus opens a new dimension in performance, interpretation, timbre, and audience experience.

HyperOrgel is a project of the Intelligent Instruments Lab, an interdisciplinary research laboratory within the University of Iceland that explores the role of artificial intelligence in new musical instruments and technology more broadly. At Hallgrímskirkja there will be evening concerts, lunchtime concerts, a lecture, and computer-controlled works presented during the church’s opening hours.

Áki Ásgeirsson – Artistic Director
Sveinn Ingi Reynisson – Technical Director

HALLGRÍMSKIRKJA – YOUR PLACE IN REYKJAVÍK