Reykjavík Folk Festival 2026

The Drop In is joined by SIGMAR ÞÓR MATTHÍASSON, current director of the Reykjavík Folk Festival, which runs 19–21 March 2026. The festival is modeled on international tradition, with the joy of playing at its heart and unamplified instruments taking centre stage. The first festival was held with this guiding principle in 2010. The driving force, visionary, chief architect and first executive director of the Reykjavík Folk Festival was Ólafur Þórðarson, a beloved musician and a member of the band Ríó Tríó and several other acts, as well as a staunch supporter of countless musicians.

Sigmar joined us to discuss how this festival is continuing, with musicians handling everything to include lighting, and local Reykjavík brewers Ægir making a custom beer for the event. 

Folk music has sometimes been defined as music or musical influences that trace their origins to the ordinary common person — a musical heritage passed down from person to person, generation to generation. More often than not, this can be traced back to friends or family coming together to sing and play freely and spontaneously. It might therefore be more accurate to speak of it as "people's music" (alþýðutónlist).

The main programme of the Reykjavík Folk Festival takes place at Iðnó on Friday 20 March and Saturday 21 March.

Tickets can be found at tix.is 

More information at:

facebook.com/reykjavikfolkfestival

instagram.com/reykjavikfolkfestival

PROGRAMME:

Friday 20 March

• Iðnó — free admission 18:00 — MÍT Showcase concert, Ásgeir Helgi & Theodóra
• Iðnó 
• 19:00 — Doors open, Ásgeir Ásgeirsson performs on “oud” 20:00 — Svavar Knútur 
• 21:00 — Umbra 
• 22:00 — Ode to Icelandic Folk Music (artists of the evening joined by Snorri Helgason and Brek)
• Ægir 101 
• 23:00 — After-party, bar discounts for ticket holders

Saturday 21 March

• Iðnó — free admission, life and energy in all spaces! 
• 13:00 — Danslög Jónasar, introduction and dancing 
• 15:00 — Family programme, clapping games with Sigga & Ingibjörg
• Iðnó 
• 19:00 — Doors open, Margrét Arnar performs on accordion 20:00 — Soffía Björg & Fríða Dís 
• 21:00 — Árstíðir 
• 22:00 — Una Torfa
• Ægir 101 
• 23:00 — After-party, bar discounts for ticket holders

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:14

Hello and welcome to the drop in, where we as a Reykjavik Grab fan uh interview people who kind of semi-randomly drop in. Uh but this time around it's not a random. We asked Zimmer here to uh to drop in and and talk about the uh Reykjavik Folk Festival, which he's organizing, and he's not only doing that, he's also directing it to the lighting and are you playing bass too, or yes. And it's uh a festival taking place uh this weekend. Um so it's uh 20th today, 20th and 21st, and it features people such as uh Swamaknutur, well known in in those musical circles, uh Umpra and it's uh yeah, and then we have an oat to Icelandic music.

SPEAKER_02 1:02

So that's uh that's Norri Helkason and Snorri and uh and Swawar. Yeah, and and Umbra, and then my band Break. So we're gonna it's like a collaboration for the last last act of the night tonight.

SPEAKER_01 1:18

So well, who are the people behind the festival and how long has it been running?

SPEAKER_02 1:23

Well, let me tell you a story. It started in 2010, and uh the guy behind it uh his name was Olaf Thorodason, a legendary uh musician and uh presenter, uh radio presenter from um the band Rio Trio.

SPEAKER_01 1:42

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:43

So back in the day, and uh but he was then a part of a band they called South River Band.

SPEAKER_01 1:49

Yes, I remember that.

SPEAKER_02 1:50

And uh it was those guys who started the festival. Um but then just an year later he tragically uh passed away. Uh so the year after they they had like this um foundation, like uh uh a concert to support him. But then after that they continued the festival in in his name, kinda, and it and it ran until 2018, um, with different uh people uh directing it, Snorri Halkason being one of them, and uh Margaret Artnatotir, Accordian player. She ran it for two years, if I remember correctly. But uh for some reason, maybe mixed reason because of maybe the pandemic and some other things that I don't know, uh it uh it went on kind of this hiatus uh from 2018 until last year. Um when we, the members of Perec, um we've we had been talking about uh how we missed this festival kinda. We uh some of us used to play in it back in the day, and like, oh, there's missing this festival, you know. We we need uh a scene for this type of music, and uh so we just did it ourselves.

SPEAKER_00 3:09

That's the way to do it. That's fascinating. This is this is we're talking about folk music, and uh I I came across here last night at Iceland Iceland Music, yeah, and I was just amazed by the energy of the group. Everybody, when you talk about folk music, often you're talking about self-taught musicians, and sometimes it can be kind of uh I hate to say this term, but kind of posery. And this was the opposite experience I had last night. It was a lot of uh people doing everything musicians, and uh I know for you, uh you're uh sorry, Sigmar Matthiasen. Uh the organizer here is not just uh he says he's kind of playing in musicians, but you're a well-trained musician. You you and I were talking about our experiences in New York, and you're from the new school.

SPEAKER_02 3:54

Yes, exactly. So I come from a jazz background. Yeah. I am uh I I also work as a jazz musician, you know, session musician, play with a lot of different people around. Um but uh I but then like it was right before the pandemic, actually, like uh uh when I they offered me to join the this band Breck, they had been like sort of uh playing together for about two years, and then uh I joined them, and and that was kind of the experience or what got me personally like through the pandemic. If I don't want to talk about that in this interview, right? But uh it was like a a a musical epiphany for me because I wasn't that much involved in folk music before. Right. So I kinda and but then just by listening and and and uh getting to know music through my band members and and working on music together.

SPEAKER_01 4:53

I I think it I think it's fine to mention the pandemic as long as uh as long as it leads into a positive. A lot of us got passions out of the pandemic, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:01

Sorry, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's good. So uh and um yeah, but yeah, I come from a jazz background. I lived in in New York uh for about three years studying jazz music, but um, yeah, and then I've been back now for ten years uh in Iceland, uh mostly doing I also do my own solo career with uh jazz music and uh and uh and some world music influences.

SPEAKER_00 5:29

Yeah, we were talking last night with uh obviously so you're like a musician's musician. Everybody there was a me in this involved in this festival is a musician's musician. It's like folk music um in not cat how do I say this? It yeah, there's no there's thought put into every everything, everybody's performance, as I saw last night in just the some of the the run throughs, and we were playing some playlists last night. Um so this is kind of a fascinating uh experiment, this Reiki Vic folk festival. I feel like it's going to be going on for a while. But last night you were we were hanging out with the drummer from um the sugar cubes. Yeah, Shiki. Yeah, amazing man going into depth about um the how we can overlap world music with jazz and folk in a set, like yeah, yeah, in the ideal world we could transform all genres. So uh and all you were holding your own in this this in-depth conversation. Um yeah, and obviously today you were holding your own when I grabbed you for the interview. You were doing lighting for force.

SPEAKER_02 6:36

Just just some cables and stuff, because uh one of the members of of Breck, he's actually like uh he works uh he is like the lighting master at the National Broadcast Company. So uh yeah, yeah, he's the technician in the group. Okay he just like sends us over here, connect this or whatever.

SPEAKER_01 6:58

So you basically have a production crew included in your band.

SPEAKER_02 7:02

Yeah, it's uh it's a full DIY uh production.

SPEAKER_00 7:05

Yeah, DIY perfectly trained individuals. This is fantastic, yeah. And and so the first the tonight some of the featured acts are at Isno. Last night there was a traditional session at Aiger. Yes, exactly. Um I I believe I saw that Aiger custom made you a beer for this festival, which is pretty amazing. I I wish I had you know, I just don't have the lifestyle to be able to looked awesome. Yeah. Uh I had some delicious coffee. Uh but that's good as well. It will be available the beer at the rest of the festival? Oh yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:36

It will be available at at Inno and at Air1. And um yeah, it's uh it's uh it's a nice thing to have. Like uh it's more than just uh music experience, you know. We want to have it like a full experience with uh with everything, you know. Next we need some merch as well, so we don't have any t-shirts or whatever, but uh, but you're starting with the actual product before the merch.

SPEAKER_00 8:00

I kind of like that too. So uh tonight we have this this closeout session with Snorri. Uh you know eight o'clock Svava Knuth. Yeah. Uh and then Umbra at nine. And then you'll your band will be playing.

SPEAKER_02 8:14

Yeah, the collaboration project at ten o'clock at the No.

SPEAKER_00 8:18

And then and then I'd we were talking a lot about the students at the Oh yes, yes, of course.

SPEAKER_02 8:23

I forgot to mention. Because before the main concert program today at six o'clock, we're gonna have students from uh MET, Mantaskoly Ton List, two acts, two bands uh playing uh in on the second floor at Inno. They have like this small hall upstairs. Uh we're gonna set up a uh small stage and speakers and stuff up there, and uh two well it's two soloists, I guess, with with their bands. Okay. They're called Auschgir Helki and uh Teotora. So uh all band members are are students at the music school and uh doing their yeah, their type of folk music, I guess, like indie folk.

SPEAKER_00 9:13

Yeah, we were going we were talking about the lineup and how some of the the tonalist uh scholy uh met the skoly tonalist, sorry. Um students, some of them even had like one of them had an electric guitar and kind of interested. They're really interpreting you're not locked down to one tradition. But I know that we were talking last night about the Icelandic tradition will be reflected, I believe you said tomorrow on Sunday night.

SPEAKER_02 9:37

I think uh I think the the most uh traditional group maybe on the program. This festival is Umpra.

SPEAKER_00 9:45

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 9:46

They are gonna be singing uh I think I believe so, some Icelandic folk songs. Um and playing the Longspiel, the only traditional Icelandic instrument. Icelandic instrument, and uh but they mix it also with uh the with with with fiddle, violin, and uh one of them is playing a Celtic harp and uh and a harmonium uh from India like this small harmonium, a keyboard instrument. Um but yeah, it's an interesting question because then tomorrow for the main concert program, we m I would say maybe more mainstream acts like Una Torva is closing down the program. She's a a big you could call pop star in Iceland. But but her music still has these uh folky elements, you know.

SPEAKER_01 10:52

Yeah, lyrically and musically she is quite falky, I would completely agree with that.

SPEAKER_02 10:57

Yeah, so uh uh because for us like this music, because I also want to say that we are not a traditional folk festival. Like we we like uh not every act is gonna be playing the Longspit, you know. Right. Uh but uh it's more that's why we call it in Icelandic uh Alti the Ton List which is like people's music or storytelling music.

SPEAKER_01 11:21

So there won't be a riot when somebody shows up with an electric guitar. Yeah, yeah, exactly. For those who understand that cultural reference.

SPEAKER_02 11:30

I think so like the main, I would say maybe two uh focus points of the festival is is acoustic, that's what we like at least, and uh like uh telling a story, storytelling. So we try to get those type of artists.

SPEAKER_01 11:50

Will uh Snorra Helkerson therefore be performing some of those songs from his 2018, I believe, album, which Mart Pirithogony album.

SPEAKER_02 11:59

Yes, well he did that last year actually. Okay. Um but we uh because we have this um uh theme of the festival that we're kinda dedicating this year's festival to his father, yes, who was Helky Pierre, who was a very good thing.

SPEAKER_01 12:16

Also a member of the same band as Rio Trio, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:20

And he passed away just late last year. Um and so that was kinda like the the idea for this program at ten o'clock uh tonight. So we we just thought we we can't do this without having Snari with us. So he's gonna be singing uh mostly Rio Trio songs tonight.

SPEAKER_01 12:43

I kinda have to see that.

SPEAKER_00 12:44

Yeah, this is this is uh such a fundamental part of Icelandic society that we don't talk about in the grapevine because we talk about pop music so much. Um your first act tonight, Svaboknuter, is um I I perform in the folk community, but I also know Swabaknutar as a funeral singer and somebody who sings traditional folk music and and hymns at funerals, which is something that is not omnipresent in modern society. The importance of a folk singer at a funeral is k is uh is present and and uh huge here. It makes a big i it's just something that uh I I don't know if even in England they have something like this. We certainly don't have it in America. So I've seen Svaver Knuter at a at a couple funerals and the impact he has, I mean he's just obviously he's a very skilled musician, but he's also just a part of society. So I've always I I think this is a fascinating lineup. Um and something that we just don't quite have the resources yet to explain to to our audience and I'd like to work on. Um so uh yeah, so tonight's lineup is perfect. Hopefully, we can get this video broadcasting. We'll put it out tonight. I think I think we have some foreigners who are maybe trapped in the country. Uh all flights were cancelled. All flights were canceled.

SPEAKER_01 14:05

We have people who have nothing with nothing to do, and this is perfect for them.

SPEAKER_00 14:09

Come to Illino tonight. I know in our in our family we'll be covering because for us this music is extremely important, yeah, just culturally.

SPEAKER_01 14:17

So But uh we should end with like just like the bare bones information. Where can you get tickets? Yes. What what does it apply to? What uh where we should explain where the where Ilno is. Yes. Ilno is uh it's uh a community hall uh wooden structure next to the pond, next to the city hall. So it's easy to find. Yes. Yeah. Tickets are at Tix.

SPEAKER_02 14:43

Ticks.is.is. Or just at the door.

SPEAKER_01 14:46

Or at the door. Yeah. Even better.

SPEAKER_02 14:48

They look like this. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You can get a festival wristband or just for one night. So you can do both.

SPEAKER_01 14:55

Yeah. And uh I think that's perfect. Let's yeah, let's just get this out there and and try to get people mobilized.

SPEAKER_00 15:01

The weather is yeah, I was gonna say you can follow up by the you have an online presence as well for seeing what happened this year and what's gonna happen next year. Because I believe this is going to go on. I I hope with your with your organizational skills, because I th it looks like you you have the team to keep this going. Is it just all Reykjavik Folk Festival?

SPEAKER_02 15:20

Yeah, uh we're on uh social media, just hashtag uh not the hashtag at Reykjavik Folk Festival on Instagram and Facebook. We don't have uh uh uh website just yet, but uh it will be up for next year. Okay promise.

SPEAKER_00 15:37

Making promises. Perfect. Uh Sigmar, fantastic to have you, and we're so happy what with what you we're so happy about what you're doing. I know the effort it takes to do something like this. Oh god, yes. And uh and and I I really believe this is the team that's gonna keep it going, so thank you.

SPEAKER_01 15:54

Yeah, thank you very much. And thank you all for dropping in. Yeah, thank you. Bye bye. Thank you.