MOONBOW is Gunnar Andreas Kristinsson’s second album, the first to be released on a major label. The music, performed by leading members of the Icelandic contemporary music scene, was recorded in Kaldalón and Norðurljós, the two recital halls of Harpa Reykjavik Concert Hall. While Gunnar’s first album, Patterns, contains pieces from his study and freelance years in The Hague, MOONBOW is a selection of more mature works from a fruitful period in the composer’s life after moving back to Iceland in 2009, with all the experience from the Netherlands in his pocket. The album features a trio, a quartet and a quintet, flanked by two larger ensemble pieces. The works are diverse, not only in terms of instrumentation but also in terms of musical subject and give a good insight into Gunnar’s distinctive and personal sound-world. 

With his sensitive insight, Gunnar Andreas Kristinsson has developed a unique and personal style through the years. Typical for his music are unfolding processes, passages that transform smoothly from one texture to another, shifting between contrasting moods. Another characteristic is strictly constructed, multi-layered, continuous movements with musical elements being drawn in and out of the foreground through instrumentation and articulation. Textures woven out of rhythmic and melodic patterns, like patchwork, is yet another distinctive feature. 

Gunnar has been described as a ‘strong Icelandic voice with a fresh and bold imagination’. His music has been praised for being vivid and inventive, highly original, pleasantly coherent, purposefully constructed, filled with mystique and magical power. 

1. Sisyfos [18:06]

2. Patterns IIb [11:39]

3. Moonbow [15:32]

4. PASsaCAgLia B [6:41]

5. Roots

I. [4:09]

II. [3:32]

III. [2:48]

Total Time [62:32]

Total time: 62:32
Release date: April 23, 2021
UPC: 053479224620

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Quotes & Reviews

“It is a personality that is very intriguing with its expressive and unconventional works. It is not difficult to be fascinated by his ambitious compositions, which enchant not only with the colors of sounds and tones, but also with forms that also have such a strong impact on the imagination of the listener…. Moonbow Is an extremely important work. From every technical point of view, it is perfect. It is distinguished by maturity, creativity and discipline.” - Marcin Kozicki, Stacja Islandia

“The best songs you missed in 2021 - NPR Press Pause & Hit Play” - Lars Gotrich, NPR

“New Sounds #4496, Fast Movement/Slow Motion” - John Schaefer, New Sounds

“The well-developed music may remind one of inhospitable landscapes and the myths of the island, but it is also not denying its proximity to minimal music. Quite powerful passages stands next to restrained expression.” - Uwe Krusch, Pizzicato

“Moonbow demonstrates consummate craftsmanship in winning performances. Recommended.” - Christian Carey, Sequenza 21

“Moonbow’s sound is dominated by its orchestration, reminiscent of atonal music by Webern or Berg. Sisyfos, the first track on the album, is a stunning showcase of clarinet virtuosity set alongside an ensemble of 13 musicians. The album’s title track, Moonbow, is a slowly moving mass of strings that devolves into something wild. Over the course of 15 minutes, Kristinsson uses slightly changing rhythmic motifs to guide the piece. The album’s brightest track is Roots I, a strange and terrific piece built around droning notes. Subdued strings lie atmospherically below woodwinds that intone repeating notes. It feels like meditation, until it descends into chaos at its end.” - Ben Kutner, SF Classical Voice

“this entire package is a musical and technological triumph. Sixty-odd minutes of accessible, original music performed with total conviction and complete assurance by a quintet of uniquely constituted ensembles offered in a choice of ideal sonic options. The two-speaker sound is outstanding in any case. The quality of everything that comes my way from Sono Luminus seems assured even before I’ve removed the cellophane wrap. I have ceased to be surprised by this label, and if I didn’t get some of these discs for review I would take out a subscription. And no, I’m not taking a cut.” - Richard Hanlon, MusicWeb International

“Sometimes a work will blossom gradually from modest beginnings into a complex, dynamic whole; whereas one setting might feature episodes that evolve through dramatically contrasting moods, another will advance like a tectonic mass with layered elements moving between foreground and background. A programmatic dimension might inform one, whereas another might focus purely on the examination of a musical idea. The typical Kristinsson work neither panders nor alienates; it's instead music of formal integrity that makes no concessions to commercialism yet is accessible nevertheless.” - Ron Schepper, Textura