Mystical Creatures

August 7th at 18:00, Norðurljós

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Three voices intertwine in Seigla’s opening recital to explore myths of the natural world. Harpa Ósk Björnsdóttir, Kristín Einarsdóttir Mäntylä and Sophie Kidwell, accompanied by Elísabet Waage, harpist, and Matthildur Anna Gísladóttir, pianist, bring together opera, art song, and folk traditions from across Europe. Moving between rivers, forests, and the supernatural beings said to inhabit them, the music traces stories that have flowed through European culture for centuries.

The programme opens in the realm of water, where myth and nature meet. The Rhine Maidens of Richard Wagner’s Das Rheingold guard their radiant treasure beneath the river’s surface. In Antonín Dvořák’s Rusalka, the water nymphs call from the depths, while the famous Song to the Moon expresses longing and wonder beneath the night sky.

Clara Schumann’s Lorelei, inspired by the legendary siren of the Rhine, and Rebecca Clarke’s haunting Seal Man, drawn from Celtic selkie folklore, continue this exploration of mystical water worlds.

From water, the journey leads into the forest, a place of transformation and hidden life. In Hänsel und Gretel, the children wander into the woods encountering the Witch. Leoš Janáček’s Cunning Little Vixen features a playful duet of foxes, capturing the vitality and freedom of woodland creatures. Richard Strauss’s Waldseligkeit (Forest Bliss) offers a lyrical vision of the quiet enchantment of nature.

opening ceremony

Welcome to Seigla’s Opening Ceremony in Hörpuhorn before the first recital of the festival starts. We will celebrate the beginning of Seigla’s sixth edition! Join the festival’s performers, organisers, and guests as we gather to mark the start of a weekend filled with music, memorable experiences, and good company. The festival programme will be introduced, and several Seigla artists will take the stage to offer a taste of what is to come.

About the performers

The musical paths of sopranos Kristín and Harpa, and mezzo-soprano Sophie, have crossed many times over the years. Harpa and Kristín grew up singing together in the choirs of Langholtskirkja in Reykjavík and later continued their studies at the Reykjavík Singing School and at the University of Music and Theatre “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” in Leipzig. Kristín and Sophie first shared the stage at the Schlossfestspiele Ettlingen in a production of Carmen, where Sophie sang the title role and Kristín appeared as Mercédès.

Harpa and Sophie later spent two seasons together at Theater Basel as members of OperAvenir, the theatre’s opera studio. There they performed in a wide range of productions, including Das Rheingold, Götterdämmerung, The Cunning Little Vixen, Into the Woods, and Carmen. During the same period, Kristín was a frequent visitor to the Basel region, performing in productions of Parsifal nearby.

This concert marks the first time they appear together on stage as a trio. Joining them are pianist Matthildur Anna Gísladóttir and harpist Elísabet Waage, who together help bring to life the concert’s world of water, forests, and mystical creatures.

Chats with performers

After the opening concert of Seigla, guests are invited to stay and meet the performers over drinks and conversation. This is a chance to let the music continue in conversation - to talk about the works, the ideas behind them, and the shared experience of the evening in a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere. The bar at Hörpuhorn will be open, offering drinks and light refreshments for purchase.

programme

· WATER ·

Richard Wagner (1813–1883)
Rheintöchter Trio from the opera Das
Rheingold: “Lugt, Schwestern!..”

Clara Schumann (1819–1896)
Lorelei

Edward Elgar (1857–1934)
From Sea Pictures:
Sea Slumber Song
Where Corals Lie

Rebecca Clarke (1886–1979)
The Seal Man

Claude Debussy (1862–1918)
Beau soir
(with harp)

Traditional Welsh Folk Song
Ar Lan y Môr (“On the Sea Shore”)
(with harp)

Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904)
From the opera Rusalka:
Trio of the Water Nymphs “Hou hou hou,
stojí měsíc nad vodou!”
Měsíčku na nebi hlubokém (“Song to the
Moon”)

Interlude
(Harp Solo)

Alphonse Hasselmans (1845-1912)
La Source

· FORESTS ·

Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847)
Ye spotted snakes

Benjamin Britten (1913–1976)
Come Now a Roundel from A Midsummer
Night’s Dream
A Charm from A Charm of Lullabies

Engelbert Humperdinck (1854–1921)
From Hänsel und Gretel
Abendsegen (Evening Prayer)
Wo bin ich?... Mir ist so wohl
Knusper, knusper, knäuschen

Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
Waldesgespräch

Franz Schubert (1797–1828)
Der Erlkönig

Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901)
“Ninfe! Elfi! Silfi! Doridi!”
Nannetta’s Forest
Aria from Falstaff

Leoš Janáček (1854–1928)
Fox Duet from The Cunning Little
Vixen

Richard Strauss (1864–1949)
Trio of the Nymphs (Naiad, Dryad and
Echo) from Ariadne auf Naxos

performers

Harpa Ósk Björnsdóttir · soprano

Sophie Kidwell · mezzo-soprano

Kristín Einarsdóttir Mäntylä · mezzo-soprano

Elísabet Waage · harpist

Matthildur Anna Gísladóttir · pianist