{"id":4060,"date":"2013-12-24T22:54:25","date_gmt":"2013-12-24T20:54:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/?p=4060"},"modified":"2018-03-21T11:17:00","modified_gmt":"2018-03-21T09:17:00","slug":"4060","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/?p=4060","title":{"rendered":"Home for Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00c1rst\u00ed\u00f0ir –\u00a0\u00a0Fr\u00edkirkja, Reykjavik; December 23rd 2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

I had been planning and waiting for this concert for an entire year and when the day was finally here it felt so surreal I had to keep reminding myself that I was not dreaming. No, it was not a dream, but a dream come true to see \u00c1rst\u00ed\u00f0ir at their annual Christmas concert at Fr\u00edkirkjan \u00ed Reykjav\u00edk and it was even more amazing and more beautiful than I could have ever imagined. The atmosphere at that church is really something special and the sound can only be described as otherworldly (*tips hat to the sound engineer*) \u2013 that alone would have made for an amazing concert, but there was something extra in the house that night, some magic that only happens when great musicians put all their love, passion and energy into one performance and captivate the audience so fully they forget space and time, only existing in that one moment for as long as the concert lasts. Not only am I very happy but deeply grateful for having had the chance to witness this. It was worth every minute I waited, every cent spent and every kilometer traveled, it is even worth having to spend Christmas Eve in a foreign country, far from my family.<\/p>\n

There are a few memories connected to this concert long before it happened: Checking flights in November last year and realizing I would not be able to afford going that December; finding out the date of this concert on an April day in Budapest; finally booking the flight; making and changing plans; some incredulous, surprised and happy looks I got from the guys when I told them I\u2019d be there. Yet December was so busy I didn\u2019t even find the time to mentally prepare for this when suddenly I was on a flight to Reykjavik and tomorrow was going to be the big day. The city greeted me with ice and snow \u2013 the winter I had been missing at home. \ud83d\ude42 I had a wonderful first evening in the city. \ud83d\ude00<\/p>\n

The day of the concert was spent in a tired haze \u2013 excitement had kept me from sleeping. The weather was shitty, but nothing and nobody could have spoiled my good mood. \ud83d\ude00\u00a0Finally the time was there and after a short walk I found myself inside the church sitting in front row, looking at the stage where I would see \u00c1rst\u00ed\u00f0ir for the final time this year. This felt even more surreal than the trip to Toronto had and while I was looking at the still empty stage I was wondering if I\u2019d wake up any time soon. The concert was sold out and the church filled up quickly.<\/p>\n

At first time slowed to a crawl, but suddenly my watch said it was 9 pm. Mere moments after I heard the guys sing, but the stage was empty. Following the sound I turned in my seat and saw them standing in a half circle up on the balcony where the organ is. As their voices filled he church singing \u2018And so it goes\u2019 a huge smile spread on my face. To my surprise only very few people turned to look at them. The guys walked down from the balcony to much applause and sang the second song \u2018Shchedryk\u2019, an Ukrainian folk song, standing by the soundboard. I don\u2019t know the proper musical terms to describe that song, but it sounded really interesting and fun. They continued the concert on stage with \u2018Ages\u2019, \u2018L\u00e1tum okkur sj\u00e1\u2019 and \u2018G\u00f3\u00f0a veislu gj\u00f6ra skal\u2019 and every song was just perfect. From here on they performed many songs with guests. It was a mixture of their own songs and Christmas songs. At times I wished I knew Icelandic to understand what they were saying, especially when they made jokes and everyone was laughing. Yet it did not spoil my enjoyment that I didn’t.<\/p>\n

\u2018Gl\u00e4ns \u00f6ver sj\u00f6 och strand\u2019 was the first song with Karin on stage. She has a wonderfully clear and full voice that seemed to rise forever. I\u2019m pretty sure my mouth was hanging open, while I was marveling at the sheer beauty of her singing. The rest of the audience agreed and would not stop clapping and cheering for her. She also sang on \u2018Allt er hlj\u00f3tt\u2019 and they added an extra violin player for this and the following song. I did not catch the violinist\u2019s name, but she was a great addition. \ud83d\ude42 \u2018\u00fe\u00e9r \u00e9g unni\u2019 was as beautiful and amazing as always, yet did not stick out as much as usual, because absolutely everything sounded great that night. With all the concerts I have seen, I don\u2019t think there has ever been one that sounded better, even though there were a few very special ones among them. The church has perfect reverb for this type of music and the sound engineer worked a miracle with it.<\/p>\n

For \u2018Silkirein\u2019 Myrra R\u00f3s joined \u00c1rst\u00ed\u00f0ir on stage and shared vocals with J\u00f3n. It was the first time I consciously heard him sing lower and not falsetto as he often does \u2013 a beautiful contrast to Myrra\u2019s high voice. \ud83d\ude42 Myrra stayed on stage for \u2018Vetrarvisa\u2019 and the a-cappella song \u2018Hati\u00f0 fer a\u00f0 h\u00f6ndum ein\u2019. Somehow time stood still and moved at double speed simultaneously \u2013 they were more than halfway through the concert already while it felt like mere minutes. Yet, at that time I was not thinking about how many songs they had played or how many might still be ahead. Instead, I was caught up in the moment so much the outside world disappeared and only music existed. My heart was so full of love and pure joy I thought it would burst.<\/p>\n

\u2018Or\u00f0 a\u00f0 eigin vali\u2019 and \u2018Ljo\u00f0 \u00ed Sand\u2019 followed \u2013 the tears I had been close to all night started flowing. The smile on my face never faded though, these were happy tears. :\u2019) All the emotions from the past few days caught up with me then and there, memories to last me a lifetime. For \u2018Til Hennar\u2019 the violinist, who had been gone for a few songs, joined the guys again.\u00a0\u2018N\u00fa gleymist \u00e9g\u2019 was even more powerful than it usually is and \u2018Heyr himna\u00a0smi\u00f0ur\u2019 seemed to finally have found its place and come home \u2013 which venue could suit the song better than a church in Iceland?<\/p>\n

\u2018\u00d3 helga n\u00f3tt\u2019 brought Karin back and the final song \u2018Heims um b\u00f3l\u2019 (Silent Night) was sung by everyone, including the audience who had been handed the lyrics upon entry. I didn\u2019t dare trying to sing Icelandic and opted for the German version instead. It went quite well until I realized I had completely forgotten anything after the first verse. \ud83d\ude09 Oh well, listening was just as nice. \ud83d\ude42 They left the stage to standing ovations and much cheering. Nobody in the audience stopped until they came back out and J\u00f3n motioned us to sit back down. I\u2019m not entirely sure what he said, but I assume it was something along the lines of \u201cWe did not rehearse anything else, so we will have to sing the song again\u201d, because they went for a reprise of \u2018G\u00f3\u00f0a veislu gj\u00f6ra skal\u2019. Along with other people in the audience, Myrra and I were stamping our feet in rhythm. We shared a look and a smile and did it through the whole song. \ud83d\ude00 Thus ended the concert and after a final bow they left. It was everything I had imagined and so much more. Thank you, \u00c1rst\u00ed\u00f0ir and everyone else involved for making this one so special.<\/p>\n

Setlist<\/span><\/p>\n

And so it goes
\nShchedryk
\nAges
\nL\u00e1tum okkur sj\u00e1
\nG\u00f3\u00f0a veislu gj\u00f6ra skal
\nGl\u00e4ns \u00f6ver sj\u00f6 och strand
\nAllt er hlj\u00f3tt
\n\u00fe\u00e9r \u00e9g unni
\nSilkirein
\nVetrarvisa
\nHati\u00f0 fer a\u00f0 h\u00f6ndum ein
\nOr\u00f0 a\u00f0 eigin vali
\nLjo\u00f0 \u00ed Sand
\nTil Hennar
\nN\u00fa gleymist \u00e9g
\nHeyr himna\u00a0smi\u00f0ur
\n\u00d3 helga n\u00f3tt
\nHeims um b\u00f3l<\/p>\n

Encore:<\/em>
\nG\u00f3\u00f0a veislu gj\u00f6ra skal<\/p>\n

Of course I hung out for a while, hugged everyone, watched them taking down the stage and went out with a few of the guys for a drink after. It was a nice way to come down and change from \u201csky-high and unable to sleep\u201d- mode to a calm and comfortable feeling of relaxed happiness. \ud83d\ude42 Around 1 am all energy suddenly left me, I got tired. A last goodbye, a last hug, \u201csee you next year\u201d and it was time to go. Soon after, drifting off to sleep I was still smiling.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00c1rst\u00ed\u00f0ir –\u00a0\u00a0Fr\u00edkirkja, Reykjavik; December 23rd 2013 I had been planning and waiting for this concert for an entire year and when the day was finally here it felt so surreal I had to keep reminding myself that I was not … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[222,603,13,19,348,294,14],"class_list":["post-4060","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-concert","tag-arstidir","tag-christmas-concert","tag-fan","tag-friends","tag-frikirkja","tag-reykjavik","tag-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4060","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4060"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4060\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8968,"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4060\/revisions\/8968"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4060"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4060"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/passioncolorseverything.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4060"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}