A Thin Veneer on a Fiery Pool

The Chamber Opera Þunnt skæni á logandi vök (A Thin Veneer on a Fiery Pool) is an exciting new opera based on the reality the Icelandic nation has faced since the volcanic eruptions in Suðurnes started a few years ago. Magnea J. Matthíasdóttir wrote the libretto in the form of a long poem. 

It deals in a dramatic way about the threat here in Iceland from volcanic eruptions, as the inhabitants of the Reykjanes peninsula in Southwest Iceland can attest to after the upheavals of the past few years. The poem deals with fire, both from the bowels of the earth as well as from above: a black blanket which can either be cooling lava or else the burnt forests and scorched land. The poem is written from the perspective of the the land and Nature, the eternal Gaia, herself, describing both the end and also new beginnings. I leave it to the listener to decide whether mankind is a part of the new beginning – or not.

The opera has eight distinct sections and makes extraordinary demands on its soloist. Its vocal range is wide, and the singer must move from the most delicate passages to singing at full power. Hallveig Rúnarsdóttir, one of Iceland’s leading sopranos, will perform the work with the acclaimed chamber ensemble Camerarctica, whose members are among the country’s finest instrumentalists.

In August, the chamber opera was performed in the old abandoned storage-tanks at Raufarhöfn, north-east Iceland, which gave a new dimension to the experience. Far from forest fires, far from volcanic upheavals, yet at the same time, a raw environment. Now it will be performed at the Reykjavík Opera Days in Harpa, where a cinematic and photographic exhibition by Ásdís Thoroddsen creates an inspiring setting for the work.