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Harpa (concert hall)

Coordinates: 64°9′1″N 21°55′57″W / 64.15028°N 21.93250°W / 64.15028; -21.93250
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Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre
Harpa, tónlistar- og ráðstefnuhús
Harpa
Map
General information
TypeConcert hall & conference centre
LocationReykjavík, Iceland
AddressAusturbakki 2
Town or cityReykjavík
CountryIceland
Coordinates64°9′1″N 21°55′57″W / 64.15028°N 21.93250°W / 64.15028; -21.93250
Current tenantsIceland Symphony Orchestra
The Icelandic Opera
The Reykjavík Big Band
Maximus Musicus
Construction started12 January 2007
Completed2011
Opened13 May 2011
Cost€164 million[1]
OwnerPortus
Height43 metres (141 ft)
Technical details
Floor area28,000 square metres (300,000 sq ft)
Design and construction
Architecture firmHenning Larsen Architects
Batteríið
Other designersOlafur Eliasson, facade design
Artec Consultants, acoustics design
Main contractorÍAV
Other information
Seating capacity1,600–1,800 (Eldborg, main hall)
450 (Norðurljós)
750 (Silfurberg)
195 (Kaldalón)
Website
Venue website

Harpa (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈhar̥pa], English: Harp) is a concert hall and conference centre in Reykjavík, Iceland. The opening concert was held on 4 May 2011. The building features a distinctive colored glass facade inspired by the basalt landscape of Iceland.[2]

History

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Harpa was designed by the Danish firm Henning Larsen Architects in co-operation with Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson. The structure consists of a steel framework clad with geometric shaped glass panels of different colours.[3][4] The building was part of a redevelopment of the Austurhöfn area dubbed World Trade Center Reykjavík, which was temporarily abandoned when the 2008 Icelandic financial crisis took hold. The development included a 400-room hotel, luxury apartments, retail units, restaurants, a car park and the new headquarters of Icelandic bank Landsbanki.

Harpa during its construction

Construction started in 2007 but was halted with the start of the financial crisis.[2] The completion of the structure was uncertain until the government decided in 2008 to fully fund the rest of the construction costs for the half-built concert hall. For several years it was the only construction project in existence in Iceland.[2] The building was given its name on the Day of Icelandic Music on 11 December 2009, prior to which it was called Reykjavík Concert Hall and Conference Centre (Icelandic: Tónlistar- og ráðstefnuhúsið í Reykjavík).

In the opening concert on 4 May 2011, Iceland Symphony Orchestra performed under the baton of Vladimir Ashkenazy with the Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson as soloist.[5] The concert was broadcast live on RÚV, the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service.[6]

The related hotel, retail and office developments were delayed, but resumed construction by 2018 and by 2023, the development was complete. The Reykjavik Edition Hotel, managed by Marriott International opened in 2021 along with retail and restaurant units; Landsbankinn moved into their new headquarter building in early 2023.[7][8][9][10]

Architecture and use

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North facade of Harpa.

The building is the first purpose-built concert hall in Reykjavík and it was developed in consultation with artistic advisor Vladimir Ashkenazy and international consultant Jasper Parrott of HarrisonParrott.[11] It houses the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and the offices of The Icelandic Opera.

The Musician (1970) by Ólöf Pálsdóttir

In the water next to Harpa is located the sculpture The Musician (1970) by the Icelandic sculptor Ólöf Pálsdóttir. The statue is of a cellist playing, and is modelled on the Danish cellist Erling Blöndal Bengtsson, who played constantly for Ólöf as he sat for her.[12] When the Orchestra was based at its previous home at the Háskólabíó, the statue was located on Hagatorg, but it followed the Orchestra in 2014.[13]

The Icelandic Opera performs at the concert hall even though the venue is primarily designed for concerts, lacking a curtain, proscenium, and any of the traditional stage machinery.[14] The first director of Harpa was Halldór Guðmundsson.[15] The current director of Harpa is Svanhildur Konráðsdótir. Harpa is operated by Portus, a company owned by the Icelandic government and the City of Reykjavík.

In 2013, the building won the European Union's Mies van der Rohe award for contemporary architecture.[2] In 2017, the venue held the annual World Yo-Yo Contest, where over a thousand contestants from over 30 countries competed for the six champion titles. It was only the second time ever the contest was held in Europe.[16]

Ceiling inside the main atrium.

The glass façade of the building consists of 714 LED lights, 486 in the eastern part of the building and 228 in the western part.[17] These lights display a video work designed by Olafur Eliasson. In 2021 for the building's 10 year anniversary, Eliasson made 12 new light works to exhibit on the glass, one to be exhibited for each month of the year.[18] In 2014 Eliasson first granted other artists access to the building's advanced lighting system, when artists Atli Bollason and Owen Hindley exhibited the interactive art piece PONG, based on the classic arcade game Pong, for the city's Culture Night (Menningarnótt). This was the first time the façade was set to other uses than playing videos, and PONG was shown again the following year as a part of the Sónar Reykjavík festival. This marked the beginning of wider use of the light façade, as Harpa, Studio Ólafur Elíasson and the City of Reykjavík started having open applications for artistic proposals to utilize the façade the following year, and the winners got help with implementation from digital artist Owen Hindley.[19]

Notable events

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Fourth Council of Europe summit, held in 2023 in Harpa.

In addition to hosting the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Harpa is a popular conference centre and performing venue, and has hosted many other events and summits since its opening.

The fourth Council of Europe summit was held at Harpa in May 2023, with many European leaders in attendance.[20] The Arctic Circle organisation holds its annual summit at Harpa.[21]

The European Film awards, Iceland Airwaves, Reykjavik Arts Festival and EVE fanfest have been hosted at Harpa.[22]

[edit]
View from inside Harpa building

In its unfinished state, Harpa (under the earlier name Tónlistarhús) appears in Gæska: Skáldsaga by Eiríkur Örn Norðdahl, where it is temporarily turned into a mosque with the addition of a minaret.[citation needed]

It was the setting of an episode of the Netflix series Sense8.[23]

It appeared in the Netflix series Black Mirror on the episode "Crocodile".[23]

It is the site of the "rose ceremony from hell" in season 26 of The Bachelor from 2022.[24]

Harpa is featured in the film Heart of Stone from 2023.[25]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ MacKin, Laurence. "Iceland opens stunning new arts centre in the teeth of a recession". The Irish Times. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d "Harpa in Reykjavik: Iceland's symbol of recovery". Nordiclabourjournal.org. 17 June 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  3. ^ Gibberd, Matt; Hill, Albert (20 August 2013). "The Return of Ornamentation". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 18 October 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  4. ^ "Harpa Concert and Conference Centre Reykjavik by Henning Larsen Architects". de zeen magazine. 29 August 2011. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
  5. ^ McManus, David. "Harpa: Reykjavik Building, Iceland". e-architect.co.uk. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  6. ^ "Press Release: Harpa Reykjavik Concert Hall and Conference Centre Official Opening on 4 May 2011" (PDF). Morgunblaðið. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  7. ^ "Austurhöfn tekur á sig mynd". www.vb.is. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  8. ^ 'Opna lúxushótel við Hörpu 2018', Viðskiptablaðið (14 April 2015).
  9. ^ "Luxury Hotel Expects Busy Summer". Iceland Monitor. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  10. ^ Ingvarsdóttir, Ásrún Brynja (22 March 2023). "Fyrsta starfsfólkið flytur í nýjar höfuðstöðvar Landsbankans - RÚV.is". RÚV. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  11. ^ http://art4logic.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/harpa-conference-center-opera-in.html[better source needed]
  12. ^ "The Reykjavík Grapevine: The Statue Walk Around Reykjavík". Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  13. ^ "Statue of cellist Erling Blöndal Bengtsson to be moved to Harpa". Iceland Magazine. 14 April 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  14. ^ Shirley, Hugo (19 March 2012). "La bohème, Icelandic Opera, Reykjavik, review". The Daily Telegraph. London. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  15. ^ "Harpa Official Website – Staff". www.harpa.is. Archived from the original on 12 November 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  16. ^ "International Yo-Yo Federation". iyyf.org. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  17. ^ "Samkeppni um listaverk á ljóshjúp Hörpu | Reykjavik". reykjavik.is (in Icelandic). 8 December 2015. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  18. ^ "Don´t miss the show on the glass facade". www.harpa.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  19. ^ "Harpa turns into a giant canvas". Iceland Monitor. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  20. ^ "Council of Europe summit in Iceland seeks to hold Russia to account for waging war in Ukraine". AP News. 16 May 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  21. ^ "2024 Arctic Circle Assembly". Arctic Circle. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  22. ^ Chapman, Michael (6 April 2024). "All About Harpa Concert Hall in Iceland". Iceland Review. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  23. ^ a b Moerland, Mariska (11 August 2021). "All the Ins and Outs of Harpa Concert Hall & Conference Centre". What's On in Reykjavík. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  24. ^ "'The Bachelor' Being Filmed in Iceland". Iceland Monitor. 19 November 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  25. ^ "Iceland prominent in the first trailer of Heart of Stone". Iceland Monitor. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
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