Haflög - Flæðarmál and Gárur

Haflög (OceanSongs) is a set of nine pieces and a prelude inspired by the ocean and ocean related things. I wrote this music over four years while living at times away from the sea in Princeton, Arizona, Kansas, and Indiana. During that time, I found myself nostalgically dreaming of the ocean and becoming fascinated by the rich Icelandic vocabulary for describing the sea and sea related phenomena.

This is a preliminary release from this project, featuring two works Flæðarmál and Gárur, originally commissioned by my dear friends Richard and Babette Burns. These works also exist in a shorter standalone set titled Við Hafið.

Flæðarmál is inspired by a site in Saint Suliac, France, the remains of a Viking camp in a cove along the Rance River that is gradually revealed and submerged by the changing tides. The music reflects the motion of the tide as it moves in waves, slowly covering the land and weaving through the channels of the ruins. The Icelandic word Flæðarmál means “where the tide meets the shore.”

Gárur follows Flæðarmál attacca and takes its name from the small ripples that appear on the surface of still water, often signaling a subtle shift in wind or energy. While directly connected to Flæðarmál, it can also stand on its own.

Together, these two pieces offer a first glimpse into Haflög, a project shaped by a nostalgic longing for the ocean.