Anna Thorvaldsdottir

Anna Thorvaldsdottir (b. 1977) is an Icelandic composer whose “seemingly boundless textural imagination” (NY Times) and “striking” (Guardian) sound world has made her “one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary music” (NPR). Her music is composed as much by sounds and nuances as by harmonies and lyrical material, and tends to characterized by a distinctive “combination of power and intimacy” (Gramophone). Anna’s “confident and distinctive handling of the orchestra” (Gramophone) has garnered her the prestigious Nordic Council Music Prize, the New York Philharmonic's Kravis Emerging Composer Award, and the UK's Ivors Academy composer award. 
 Anna's music is widely performed internationally and has been commissioned by many of the world's leading orchestras, ensembles, and arts organizations - such as the Berliner Philharmoniker, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris, City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, International Contemporary Ensemble, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Danish String Quartet, BBC Proms, and Carnegie Hall. Among the many other orchestras and ensembles that have performed her music include the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Oslo Philharmonic, Helsinki Philharmonic, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, and Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. 
 Anna holds a PhD from the University of California in San Diego.