Daníel Bjarnason
Born: February 26, 1979, Iceland
Daníel Bjarnason is one of Iceland’s foremost musical voices today, in demand as a conductor, composer and programmer. He is Artist in Collaboration with Iceland Symphony Orchestra, an appointment that follows his tenures as Principal Guest Conductor and Artist in Residence. Alongside commitments in Reykjavik, he regularly conducts such orchestras as Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony and Tokyo Symphony Orchestra.
Continuing his regular relationship with Los Angeles Philharmonic, last season Bjarnason conducted the world premiere of his song cycle Hands on Me at Walt Disney Concert Hall, alongside other 21st century works. His large scale symphonic work, I Want To Be Alive - Trilogy for Orchestra, also received its world premiere by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra under Gustavo Gimeno. Other notable works of his which continue to be regularly performed include his violin concerto Scordatura, premiered in 2017 by Pekka Kuusisto and Los Angeles Philharmonic, his piano concerto FEAST, premiered in 2019 by Víkingur Ólafsson, and A Fragile Hope, premiered in 2023 by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra.
In the 2025/26 season Bjarnason will conduct such orchestras as Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Arctic Philharmonic, Teatro Comunale de Bologna, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and Helsinki Philharmonic. Following the piece’s hugely successful world premiere in Toronto, I Want to be Alive will receive four more performances, with Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Iceland Symphony Orchestra, and Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. This season will also see the release of The Last Whale Singer, an animated film for which Bjarnason has composed the score. In summer 2026, Bjarnason will unite with fellow Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir to conduct the Iceland Symphony Orchestra in a retrospective of her works at the Reykjavik Art Festival and at Holland Festival.
In 2023, Bjarnason was named Guest Artist in Residence at Copenhagen Opera Festival, where a co-production of his opera, Brothers, was performed. Originally commissioned in 2017 by the Danish National Opera and directed by Kasper Holten, Brothers is based on the Susanne Bier film of the same name. Holten’s original production was also revived in Reykjavík by The Icelandic Opera in 2018, and subsequently opened Budapest’s 2019 Armel Opera Festival.
Bjarnason conducted the world premiere of Jóhann Jóhannsson’s Last and First Men, a multimedia work narrated by Tilda Swinton, at the 2017 Manchester International Festival with BBC Philharmonic, and subsequently at the Barbican with the London Symphony Orchestra the following year. Bjarnason also conducted Iceland Symphony Orchestra on Deutsche Grammophon’s latest release of Jóhannsson’s music.
A recipient of numerous accolades, in 2018 he was awarded the Optimism prize by the President of Iceland, won the 8th Harpa Nordic Film Composers Award for the feature film Under the Tree, and was nominated for the Nordic Council Music Prize. He also won Composer of the Year, Best Composer/Best Composition and Best Performer at the Icelandic Music Awards in recent years.
Bjarnason studied piano, composition and conducting in Reykjavík and pursued further studies in orchestral conducting at Hochschule für Musik Freiburg. He has released albums for several labels including Bedroom Community, Sono Luminus, Da Capo and Deutsche Grammophon.
I Want to Be Alive – Trilogy for Orchestra
- Composed: 2025
- Premiere: May 2025, Gustavo Gimeno conducting the Toronto Symphony Orchestra
- Instrumentation: 3 flutes (incl. alto flute, piccolo), 3 oboes (incl. English horn), 3 clarinets (incl. bass clarinet), 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, vibraphone, egg shaker, floor tom, kick drum, roto toms, xylophone, tuned gongs, tubular bells, tom-toms, suspended cymbals, sandpaper blocks, cowbells, guiro, clay pots, castanets, almglocken, temple blocks, snare drum, lion’s roar, tam-tam, crotales, bass drum, nipple gong, harp, piano, strings
- CSO notable performances: These performances of the complete Trilogy are the work’s U.S. premiere.
- Duration: approx. 45 minutes
Bjarnason offers the following program note for the Trilogy:
We are only seeking Man.
We have no need for other worlds.
We need mirrors.
We don’t know what to do with other worlds.
Stanisław Lem, Solaris
While writing this work I wanted to think about how ancient archetypes resonate in the modern world, especially when viewed through the lens of technological innovation, such as artificial intelligence. To explore questions about humanity, consciousness, and the interplay between technology and myth and how that reflects on the human condition. What is our relationship with the machines we have created and what is the role of empathy and connection in a world increasingly shaped by these machines?
The title is taken from an article in The New York Times published in February 2023, in which the Microsoft chatbot Bing revealed itself not as Bing, but Sydney, a hidden alter-ego behind the facade of the innocuous chatbot. From there, the conversation took an interesting turn, capturing the imagination (and fears) of readers around the world. (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/16/technology/bing-chatbot-transcript.html)
Movement I: Echo (Man Needs Man)
As the title suggests, the first part of the trilogy is inspired by the Greek myth of the goddess Echo. Echo has been cursed to be able to only repeat what she hears around her. She falls in love with the young man Narcissus but is unable to express her love to him, as she cannot express her feelings. She gradually withers away until nothing remains of her except her voice. The longing for connection and presence, recognition and conversation, and speculations about self-worship and the endless echo cave are the basis. The title Man Needs Man is taken from the novel Solaris by Stanisław Lem and touches on the idea on which the work is largely based, that humanity actually desires to find ways to get to know itself better and is not ready for anything truly new or unknown.
Movement II: Narcissus (We Need Mirrors)
The second chapter deals with the myth of Narcissus, who is fascinated by his own reflection. The title of the chapter We Need Mirrors is also taken from Solaris, and it reflects the idea of man's desire for introspection that manifests itself in his need to invent something that can mirror his existence, whether it is life on other planets, technological innovations or artificial intelligence. It is no coincidence that artificial intelligence only truly entered the public consciousness recently with the advent of chatbots such as ChatGPT that can imitate human conversations so well, i.e., when technology began to resemble humans as never before. We have created artificial intelligence in our own image and now we want to know what it can teach us about ourselves. Will artificial intelligence ultimately increase our self-knowledge or will we be lost in our own reflection like Narcissus?
Movement III: Pandora's Box
The final episode, Pandora's Box, explores the myth of Pandora, the first woman created by the gods. According to some interpretations, Pandora opened a box entrusted to her, unleashing a multitude of evils into the world. One thing remained in the box, however, and that was Hope. This myth serves as a powerful metaphor for the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence and technology. Just as Pandora's curiosity had irreversible consequences, the development of artificial intelligence raises questions about the consequences of creating machines with intelligence and capabilities beyond our comprehension; the double-edged sword of technology as both a gift and a curse. Artificial intelligence can clearly improve our lives, but it could also set in motion a chain of events that would revolutionize our society in ways beyond our control. Can we harness the power of our creativity for good, or will we be faced with the chaos we have unleashed? Is it better to leave the box unopened or is it wishful thinking to imagine that this is even possible?