Icelandic folklore meets trance

[Noise From Iceland]

"Tunglið glotti gult og bleikt", an Icelandic song found in Ísmús's digital catalog - the database of the history of music and ethnography in Iceland - was given a new lease of life in the Noise From Iceland project. - I hope that because of my interpretation, more people will get to know the beauty of Icelandic folklore - says Kaśka Paluch, the author of the project.

Noise From Iceland is a sound map of Iceland that has been in development for two years. Last September, the album "Noise From Iceland" was released, where field recordings from the island are mixed with electronic dance music. Now the project goes a step further and next to field recordings, Icelandic folklore appears in the music of Noise From Iceland.

For a long time I have been thinking about combining my music and field recordings with songs in Icelandic - says Kaśka Paluch - By a twist of fate and chance, I found myself in the cavernous catalog of ÍSMÚS (íslenskur músík- og menningararfur), which stores and publishes recordings, photos, films, scripts and texts representing Icelandic culture from the past and present. The project is managed by the Icelandic Museum of Music and the Institute of Icelandic Studies (Tónlistarsafns Íslands and Stofnunar Árna Magnússonar) - says the author of the piece - While studying musicology, I specialized in ethnomusicology, so the discovery of the ethnomusicological collections from Iceland meant that I was lost in the music studio for many hours. One of the songs found there captivated me in particular.

It is sung by Hildigunnur Valdimarsdóttir, and the recording in August 1969 was recorded by Jón Samsonarson and Helga Jóhansdóttir. The author of the poem is the Icelandic writer and poet Valdimar Ásmundsson:

“Tunglið glotti gult og bleikt
gegnum rifinn skjá, Geirlaug situr others skápallinum á,
prjónar hún og prjónar hún
peysuna blá. "

“The moon was shining yellow and pink
through the torn sky,
Geirlaug sits on the terrace,
And she sews, she sews
blue sweater "

The moon is an important part of many legends in Icelandic folklore. The one about which the above song is told tells the story of Geirlaug and Glúmur. A woman is sitting at night and making a sweater. The moonlight tearing the sky like a robe, as a symbol is a harbinger of the upcoming horror. Soon Glúmur will come to Geirlaug - he is dead and wants to take her with him. The moon illuminates them as if they were on a stage.

I am very grateful to have received permission from ÍSMÚS to use this recording. I hope that thanks to my interpretation, a few more people will get to know the beauty of Icelandic folklore. Everything is accompanied by a field recording of an Icelandic storm. The author of the photo on the album cover is Magdalena Łukasiak.

The song "The Moon Glows Yellow and Pink" is available on all streaming channels: https://artists.landr.com/692531290038

About the author:

Kaśka Paluch has been living in Iceland for several years. A musicologist by education, he deals with music production and field recordings.

[img src=https://icelandnews.is/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Noise-From-Iceland.jpg]