Voces Thules is an Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

ic music ensemble formed in 1992.

The ensemble consists of five male singers (Eggert Pálsson

Eggert Pálsson

Eggert Pálsson is a percussionist with the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra. Founder of the medieval music group Voces Thules. Well known for his extensive research into Icelandic music of the Middle Ages. Eggert's research on the Office of St. Thorlak from a manuscript around 1400 was recorded by...

, Einar Jóhannesson, Eiríkur Hreinn Helgason, Guðlaugur Viktorsson and Sigurður Halldórsson) who have studied in Reykjavik

Reykjavík

Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...

, London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 and Vienna

Vienna

Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

, specializing in Icelandic medieval and contemporary music. Apart from working with Voces Thules, the members are busy with their individual careers as instrumentalists and singers. Voces Thules have been invited to perform in various international festivals, such as the 20th anniversary of the Utrecht

Utrecht (city)

Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...

 Early Music

Early music

Early music is generally understood as comprising all music from the earliest times up to the Renaissance. However, today this term has come to include "any music for which a historically appropriate style of performance must be reconstructed on the basis of surviving scores, treatises,...

 Festival in Holland, and at the 50th anniversary of the Bergen

Bergen

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....

 International Arts Festival, where Voces Thules performed two concerts with medieval music

Medieval music

Medieval music is Western music written during the Middle Ages. This era begins with the fall of the Roman Empire and ends sometime in the early fifteenth century...

 from the Icelandic manuscripts. The ensemble has recorded for radio and television and in 2006 finished recording "Office of Saint Thorlak

Saint Thorlak

Saint Thorlac Thorhalli is the patron saint of Iceland. Born in Skálholt in sourthern Iceland, he was bishop of Skalholt from 1178 until his death...

" (Þorlákstíðir), the only Icelandic saint, from a manuscript around 1400. They were nominated for the Nordic Council Music Price 2008.

Sources and links

Voces Thules homepage http://www.vocesthules.is

Male Choir International Index http://www.est.is/kvam/choirlink/enseu.htm

The Árni Magnússon Institute in Iceland http://www.am.hi.is/enska/english.php?fl=10

The Icelandic Presidents reception for Voces Thules http://www.forseti.is/Forsida/Frettir/Ollfrettin/1955