Teachers

Halldór has taught the accordion for over 10 years, both in Akranes and the Capital Region. He studied with Guðmundur Samúelsson in Grafarvogur Music School and received an advanced diploma in 2012. Halldór has played with the Accordion Quintet in Reykjavík (Harmónikukvintettinum í Reykjavík) and has played in Nótan and Siglufjörður Folk Music Festival.

Rakel María began her music studies at 8 years old, starting with piano. In her teenage years, she began taking voice lessons along with her piano studies. Rakel studied Musicology at Aalborg University where the emphasis was both on classical and rhythmic music. In Iceland, Rakel earned a BA degree and teaching qualifications from the Iceland Academy of the Arts, with voice as her main instrument. She also focused on creative music communication in her studies. Rakel has taught music in preschools and grade school as well as teaching pre-studies in music and music theory.

Petia was born in Bulgaria where she began studying the piano at the age of 5. She then came to Iceland where she studied with Snorri Sigfús Birgisson at Tónlistarskólinn í Reykjavík. Petia was a scholarship recipient at the Idyllwild Arts Academy in California before she went on to study at the San Francisco Conservatory where she got a degree in music. In California, she played chamber music as well as performing in churches. She then moved back to Bulgaria where she played chamber music. Petia has been teaching in Iceland for about 20 years.

The Spanish guitar player and composer Francisco Javier Jáuregui studied classical guitar in Los Angeles and Madrid before he graduated with a Master’s Degree from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. Javier has performed in concerts both as a soloist and as a chamber musician around Europe, the United States, Africa and Southeast Asia. He has performed guitar concertos by Vivaldi and Rodrigo as well as other works with symphony orchestras and regularly performs with other musicians. Javier has played on numerous recordings and CDs. He has taught guitar from 1997, including in London and Madrid, and has given lectures at universities in Spain and the United States. From 2002-2019, he participated in annual music projects with over a hundred schools organized by Wigmore Hall in London. Javier is one of the founders and directors of the Festival Internacional de Música de Navarra (FIMNa) in Spain and the Hafnarborg Songfest (Sönghátíð í Hafnarborg).

Jónas Sen is an Icelandic pianist, music critic and journalist with a diverse background. Jónas studied piano in Paris with Monique Deschaussées. He received a master’s degree in Music Performance Studies from the City University in London. He also has a master’s degree in Arts Management from the University of Bifröst. He has performed as a soloist in addition to working as a music critic. One of his most memorable projects is when he played piano on tours with Björk and took part in various musical projects with her. Jónas has also hosted many TV programs about music with well-known musicians. He is respected for his versatility and sharp analysis of music, which has had a significant impact on Icelandic cultural life. Jónas has taught piano since 1987.

Valdís began her music studies at a young age when she started learning the violin. At the age of 10 she switched to cello, while also studying voice and piano. Valdís graduated cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from The Hartt School of Music, University of Hartford and has a master’s degree from the Chicago College of Performing Arts. Valdís has also participated in the String Teacher Workshop at The Ohio State University. As a singer, she has performed in numerous musicals and opera productions, and as a cellist, she has played with various groups as well as in the pit of musicals. She has won numerous awards for her musical performances and has performed and taught in the United States, Germany and Iceland.

Yang was born and raised in California and has made a notable impact on Iceland’s music scene in recent years as one of the country’s most interesting pianists after moving to Patreksfjörður a few years ago. Yang is the founder and artistic director of the Iceland Piano Festival and the International Westjords Piano Festival. He has performed in concerts throughout Europe, the United States and Asia and has won numerous awards for his piano playing. Yang graduated with a B.A. in Economics and a B.M. in Piano Performance from Northwestern University. He graduated with a M.M. in Piano Performance from the Mannes School of Music and then spent three years as a D.M.A. student at USC Thornton School of Music.

Antonía Hevesi was born in Hungary and graduated from the Liszt’s Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest with an M.A. in Choral Conducting  where she also received a diploma in High School Education for Voice and Tonal Harmony. She also studied the organ at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz with Otto Bruckner. She has performed as an organist and pianist around Europe and Canada. She has participated in masterclasses in piano accompaniment and singing and has recorded CDs. From August 2002, Antonía has been the artistic director and pianist for the lunch concert series at Hafnarborg, and she has also performed at most of the Icelandic Opera’s lunch concerts since 2009. She was one of the founders of the Óp-hópur. In recent years, she has participated in close to 40 opera productions with Norðuróp, Litlu óperukompaníi, Óp-hópnum and the Icelandic Opera.

Auður graduated with a diploma from the Reykjavík School of Singing in 2001. She completed a postgraduate degree in Voice from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow in 2003. She graduated with a LRSM degree in Voice Pedagogy from the Reykjavík School of Singing in 2005 and received a M.Ed.Art. from The Icelandic University of the Arts in 2017. Auður has performed at numerous concerts in Iceland and abroad, including symphonies, oratorios, opera performances, and jazz concerts, both as a soloist and as a part of a larger group. For many years she has sung in choirs such as Schola Cantorum, Barbörukórinn and Cantoque Ensemble. After completing her master’s degree, Auður published a songbook for children, Tónlistin er þín (The Music is Yours). She works as a composer, singer, children’s choir director and voice teacher.

Matthías Stefánsson began studying the violin at the age of 5 in Akureyri. He received a diploma from the Reykjavík College of Music as well as studying the guitar at FÍH Music School. Matthías has been working as a musician since 2002, in addition to teaching violin and guitar. Matthías has played on over 150 albums and has collaborated with most of Iceland’s most well-known musicians. He has participated in numerous plays/musicals and concert performances, and has worked as a musician at the National Theatre, City Theatre, Icelandic Opera, Iceland Dance Company, the North Iceland Symphony Orchestra and the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. Matthías has composed and arranged music for artists, and he has also had two songs reached the finals of the Icelandic selection for Eurovision.

Katrin comes from Kiel, Germany. She studied the flute, with piano as a secondary instrument, at the University of Music in Detmold. She has a degree in music from the Berlin University of the Arts and in German Literature and Education from the Humboldt University of Berlin. Since 1995, Katrin has worked freelance as a teacher and flutist in various orchestras and chamber groups in Germany, England and Iceland. Since 2013, Katrin has been training the woodwind players at an orchestra camp in Wies, Germany. Katrin was the founding member of the flute quintet Sussex Flutes. Katrin plays first flute with the North Iceland Symphony Orchestra in numerous concerts and recordings, and she has also performed in various chamber music concerts in Reykjavík.

Victoria Tarevskaia is from Moldova, where she studied at the Music School in Moldova and the N.A. Rimsky Korsakov St. Petersburgh Conservatory. She graduated with a master’s degree in Cello Performance from the G. Musicescu Academy of Music in Chisinau in 1994. Victoria played with the Moldavian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra and SinfoniaNord as well as various chamber groups. Victoria has worked as a cello teacher and as an extra at the Iceland Symphony Orchestra since 1999.

Kristófer is a music teacher and musician from Reykjavík. In 2009, he received a diploma in Electric Guitar from the FÍH Music School. He then went directly to the Iceland University of the Arts where he completed his studies in Rhythmic Vocal and Instrumental Education 2001. Kristófer has also completed studies in Audio Engineering. Kristófer’s main instrument is the electric guitar but he has also studied the piano.

Edda has a bachelor’s degree, LRAM voice teaching diploma and a postgraduate diploma from the Royal Academy of Music, and a Master of Music degree from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. She later obtained a master’s degree in Marketing and International Business from the University of Iceland and a diploma in Arts Education from the Iceland University of the Arts. Edda has been involved in book and music publishing, productions, project management for music projects, including at Harpa Concert Hall, where she also worked as a marketing manager. She has also worked as a music teacher and a choir director. Edda regulary sings solos at church and with chamber choirs. Edda her sung with the Icelandic Opera, Zurich Opera and Garsington Opera, and has performed in England, Scotland, Switzerland, Spain and Germany. Edda served as the assistant principal at the music school from 2022 and became the principal in the spring of 2023.

Arndís Björk completed her piano teacher certification and a diploma in Piano Performance from the Reykjavík College of Music. After that, she went to Prague, where she pursued advanced studies in Piano Performance. Arndís began teaching the piano in 1997 and that same year she began working at the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service (RÚV), where she first worked as a music critic but later created music programs of various types. She was, among other things, the main producer of live broadcast from concerts of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra for several years. Arndís has served on the board of the Icelandic branch of EPTA (European Piano Teachers Association) and has also worked as a music critic for local newspapers. She was also the chair of the music fund of the Ministry of Education and worked as a project manager for various music festivals, such as the Reykholt Festival, the Reykjavík Arts Festival and Reykjavík Midsummer Music.

Auður completed her soloist certification from the Reykjavík College of Music. She has a Bachelor of Music degree from the New England Conservatory and a Master of Music degree from the University of Minnesota, where her teachers were the renowned couple Almita and Roland Vamos. Auður has appeared both as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan and China. Auður has played on numerous CD recordings both in Iceland and abroad and has received excellent reviews for her performances. Many of Auður’s students have won awards and are studying at music conservatories abroad.

Gunnar Karel was born in Reykjavík in 1984. He began his music studies at a young age and has played many different instruments. As a composer, Gunnar focuses mainly on chamber music as he finds that his music gets the attention it deserves in smaller setups. Besides composing, he has been making his mark as a concert producer. He founded the Sonic Festival in Copenhagen with Filip C. de Melo in 2012. He is also one of the curators for the Peripheriberry Group and the artistic director of Dark Music Days in Reykjavík. Gunnar is a member of the Danish Composers Society, the theatre group 16 elskendur and the Icelandic Composers Collective S.L.Á.T.U.R.

Grétar first studied guitar with his grandmother and then studied with Kristinn Árnason at the Kópavogur Music School. After completing his advanced diploma there, he began studying at the Iceland Academy of the Arts and graduated with a B.M. in Guitar Performance in 2009. After finishing his studies in Iceland, he moved to Barcelona where he studied with Arnaldur Arnarsson at the Escola Luthier d’Arts Musicals. He has also attended guitar masterclasses with David Russell and Manuel Barrueco. Grétar has taught guitar for about 20 years and teaches both regular guitar lessons and the Suzuki method.

Hafdís Kristinsdóttir studied piano at the Music School in Borgarfjörður, the Music School in Akranes, and the Sigursveinn Music School. She completed her music education teacher certification from the Reykjavík College of Music in 1983 and her piano teacher certification from the Sigursveinn Music School in 1996. Hafdís has been teaching piano, with short breaks, since 1978.

Sævar works as a composer, teacher and pianist. He began his music studied in Reykjanesbær Music School and FÍH before he went to the Iceland Academy of the Arts where he received a B.A. in Composition and he also studied the piano. After graduating, Sævar worked on various projects in addition to teaching. This included composing music for theatre productions and short films, doing music projects with people in rehabilitation (Metamorphonics and Korda Samfonia). He has also released albums featuring his own music. Sævar composed the music to the short film Weather Rules the Field, but Whim the Child, which was screened at the film festivals Shortshorts & Asia in Tokyo and RIFF in Reykjavík in 2024. In addition to teaching, Sævar is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Composition at the Iceland Academy of the Arts.