Thank you for having me 🙏

@timb350

Ай бұрын

Thank you for being haved.

@hamacaboy

Ай бұрын

Amazing soft touch!! Love your style man

@99Percent2one

Ай бұрын

Good job!

@fatandproud1

Ай бұрын

Thank you for a lifetime of dedication leading to such virtuosity and exquisite sensibility. What a gift to our ears!

@hakeemmatthias2619

Ай бұрын

Beautiful job on the Goldberg variations. As someone who’s just beginning to study Bach do you have any practice tips. I recently purchased a book with his chorales and I’m starting from there but it is proving a challenge.

I'm positively surprised. Well done NPR. More classical musicians, please.

@jlaurson

Ай бұрын

Yes to that.

@bencritchley2005

Ай бұрын

Some opera would be cool

@vecernicek2

Ай бұрын

Sol Gabetta!

@abstersdictionary

Ай бұрын

best you can get is Jonny Greenwood

So beautiful! Thank you Víkingur and thank you NPR Music for this magical concert 🥰

@kimschube

Ай бұрын

Thank you DG for discovering him. 😊

@myrose0123

Ай бұрын

❤love classic music❤️

I respect the tradition of the "Classical Concert" experience, but I also truly wish there was more classical music played with this atmosphere. Casual, unpretentious, and insightful... draws more attention to the music rather than the "maestro" (although, it goes without saying that Olafsson truly deserves that title)

@guyf3115

Ай бұрын

Honestly, as a classical musician, i hope the tradition of the "Classical Concert" ends for once and for all.

@cab3688

Ай бұрын

Well in the time of Chopin for example, you could listen to classical music either at a big venue, or in the more intimate setting of a salon. Chopin, unlike Liszt for example, did not enjoy playing in front of big audiences. But since we now have recordings available, these less impressive concerts are no longer a thing. It's quite sad, as I'd rather listen to a decent pianist in real life than listen to a recording of the greatest musicians to ever live.

@seheyt

Ай бұрын

It’s never been way. Just harder to find. But musicians really love this intimacy as well.If you ask they will happily play in your living room/small venue. And there’s tons of excellent chamber music and songs. Source: musician

‘Art is long and life is short’

@The_Invisible_Man

Ай бұрын

No art is life, there is no long or short.

@___xyz___

Ай бұрын

No, longcat is long.

@rjmalcolm8066

Ай бұрын

Actually if you think about it long is the and the short of life is within itself a long. Basically art is more or less a short and life, technique-based, long and music

@staffanolofsson8201

Ай бұрын

Art is long and in short glimpses we can understand it, and so our lives becomes longer, in understanding the beauty of art. We can always return to this specially moments. And so our lives becomes longer and better. So I hope.

Wait! What? Vikingur on Tiny Desk??? I'm there in a heartbeat. Only a magical artist could make a small tiny desk piano sound like a concert grand! And I think J.S. would feel fine in the middle of the tiny desk paraphernalia!

I love the contrast between the strength of his name, that can be roughly translated as "Viking, son of Olaf" and the pure and gentle touch he has on the keys. Very beautiful

@Moto_Cruiser316

Ай бұрын

He savagely desiccated that piano. 😂

@rrogers4757

Ай бұрын

L😊Like Like 😊listen 😊😊😊from k 91.5😊 I😊I'll km😊 lookk😊😊k😊 okkkl😊9oikk😅😅i8😅 4:48 ok9>😅😅😊😊I I😅 I've I've kl I l😊I😅😊😊

So beautiful. Listening to this on a Saturday morning, eating a late breakfast, enjoying the March sunshine, gazing out to sea (Devon, England)... thank you for the music, all you musicians - and NPR folk behind the scenes... much appreciated

@roisin252

Ай бұрын

Lovely description. Similar scene in Northern Ireland.

@thomascrowell2517

Ай бұрын

Today was a beautiful day.

@jimbor12

Ай бұрын

Same in Budapest:) A lovely program and Bartok was a nice surprise

Man, his articulation on the Bach - stunning.

I am a huge fan of Mr. Olafsson. His music is my go to when I want to be quiet and have his music embrace me. Love Mr. Olafsson's Bach interpretations, his personality and passion. Thank you for having him here.

His quiet hand is every piano teacher’s dream.

My favorite Goldberg interpreter since Gould!

What an incredible musician. Totally free of pretension or the desire to show off. Just pure, genuine music making from the heart.

The upright piano SINGS incredibly well! It has a very muffled sound, very very suited to the context and music you chose to play. All pieces are beautiful, but the Ave Maria was breathtaking! Thank You Maestro Vikingur!

That performance was transcendent -- more classical music, please!

Love this!! I wish more classical performances were also filled with story telling like this. Very engaging.

I'm truly in Awe. What's not to LOVE about this Breathtakingly Beautiful, so peaceful, & relaxing performance? 😍💜💜

@elliotselmon7581

Ай бұрын

EXACTLY!! Thinking and feeling the same way... AMAZING!!

@S.Shea2432

Ай бұрын

@@elliotselmon7581, We have great taste in music. 😊

What a pleasant surprise to see my favorite contemporary pianist doing a tiny desk! Ólafsson's albums and his selection of pieces for his repertoire has exposed me to so many pieces I never would have thought to seek out myself.

"The Arts and the Hours" is stunningly beautiful!!! This young (at least I can call him young) artist plays with such simple passion and delicacy. Thank you Víkingur Ólafsson- thank you Tiny Desk.

@robhickford9169

Ай бұрын

"..simple passion and delicacy.." One phrase some sometimes tell it all.

His homemade lockdown videos from Berlin were also on an upright. He is truly a master.

I believe mr Bach should be very satisfied hearing Vikingur playing this way. Wonderful!

I saw him play with SF Symphony, and as an encore, he played that Bartok, which I’d never heard before. Just beautiful.

Thank you NPR! Hjartans þakkir Víkingur!

The upright piano is in impeccable condition. what a wonderful sound!

This is by far one of the best concerts in this channel and KZread. Thanks for sharing, and thanks to Víkingur for his art. Timeless.

the second piece is so gorgeous. It's nostalgic and brings love and loss and bittersweet.

Beautifully combines clarity and artistic expression in performing the music of some of my favourite composers, and talks about it so knowledgeably but with simplicity and grace - one of the finest musicians of our time and so pleased to hear him at Tiny Desk

The Arts and The Hours is what I've been playing on repeat since the day my dog was diagnosed with terminal cancer. It's through your beautiful interpretation of this piece that gives me the calm I need to get through this difficult time. You are absolutely right when you said, "the art is long and life is short" Thank you NPR for bringing this insane talent to the Tiny Desk concerts.

What a wonderful tiny desk concert. He also seems like a completely decent and lovely human being. How refreshing.

@quaver1239

Ай бұрын

He IS (does not just "seem like") a completely decent and lovely human being. Would be so good to have more people like him on NPR's Tiny Desk concerts.

@hurricane_hazel

Ай бұрын

@@quaver1239 OK, well I don't KNOW him personally so I said "seems like," but if you know him well enough to confirm then yeah...great.

Such a brilliant idea to present classical music at npr tiny desk! Thank you and please do more! This could open so many new doors and minds in favour of classical music!♥️

@quaver1239

Ай бұрын

There used to be far more classical music on NPR. Then NPR became "woke", and then it tumbled.

@murdo_mck

Ай бұрын

Oh everybody has played at Tiny Desk: Marc André Hamelin, Taylor Swift, people like that.

What wonderful choices - French baroque is not so much played, being somewhat overshadowed by Bach and the Bartok was so lyrical and the Icelandic Ave Maria was beautiful (with a beautiful story behind it!) - an excellent Tiny Desk Concert!

This is the first time I've seen a Tiny Desk solo and deservingly so.

Very wonderful performance, thank you!

This was resplendent 🥲

A truly spiritual experience! Thank you Mr. Ólafsson for bringing us on this journey with you!

I saw Vikingur live at his first visit to Carnegie Hall, touring on his Mozart album. It was a sublime performance and his albums are a very frequent listen for me. Thank you, Tiny Desk!

Víkingur Ólafsson is the most creative and unrivaledly talented pianist of our time. He is not just good at playing the piano, but he organically weaves the epic by putting the music together. In a way, he gives off a nuance that goes beyond a performer and is more like a composer. I'm really looking forward to his future moves.

@elliotthayes1176

Ай бұрын

THE most? Try ONE of the most….

@___xyz___

Ай бұрын

No, Kim is correct. He is indeed the most. He won. The battle is over. There aren't any more good pianists. Many pianists are good, but they can't all be best. The rules were simple. We pick an arbitrary pianist at random. Víkingur Ólafsson just happened to be picked. So now we don't have to compete any more.

@kimschube

Ай бұрын

​@@elliotthayes1176I'm not commenting to convince you. I just wrote how I felt, like all the other replies, but I don't know why it's so controversial. I just said he's the best because I feel he's the best. To me, the best writer is Hermann Hesse, the best philosopher is Nietzsche, the best composer is Bach. And the best pianist is Olafsson. This is irreconcilable to me. They are irreplaceable to me. What's wrong with this? I'm saying it's the best because I feel it's the best. Let's say you consider something to be the best. Then I suddenly appear and say, "No. It's just one of the best." Will you change your mind???

Tiny Desk really scratches all of my musical itches-I can listen to BLK ODYSSEY, Berhana, Omar Apollo, and Olafsson all on one channel?? Amazing

I like how they sometimes have straight up chamber music performances on here.

Just saw him in Toronto. Mend bending, soul stirring, life changing.

my humble opinion is Bach would applaud the way you are digging in and bringing out so many levels and knitting them together like a lace - with steel deliberation 👏❤

Boy them ivories be gigglin! They’ve never had such a tickle!😅❤

@alistairdunnington

Ай бұрын

I like these words

@PostAutonomy

Ай бұрын

@@alistairdunnington that word salads got some zing right?! 🤣👌🏻

Big fan of Mr. Ólafsson, tysm for having him on!

Vikingur’s since of timing and his freedom in these pieces is absolutely beautiful! Thank you for having him on!

That was beautiful. Thank you so much for this performance Víkingur, and especially your wordly introductions , opening the gates to the music, I really enjoyed it!

Every single video I'm amazed at how fantastic these sound. Your Sound Engineer is a BEAST!!!

I will always be so grateful for NPR featuring artists I love and some I haven’t heard of! Another artist to add to my playlist ❤

You sometimes squeeze some huge bands (physically and pop-culturally) behind this desk, and yet one man with a piano can have just as much of an impact without even giving it full noise. It's an incredible instrument with a master like him at its helm.

This time, you amazed me, and at the same time, you gals/guys did it wrong. I'm sorry, but the artist's breathtaking moments are also captured. Never the less, please keep this channel alive - I'm a big BIG fan!

And after listening about 5-7 times to Rameau, Bartók and Kaldalóns I have come to love this music too. Thank you also Vikingur Olafsson for your nice introduction of this music!

Thank you for bringing Rameau to the present….such beautiful music an so beautifully performed ❤

I admire his mastery of tone colors and dynamic shaping, as well as his natural and fluid performance. It's impressive.

Beautiful! Listening to this on a sunny Easter Sunday. Thank you NPR.

Thank you @NPR for setting this up. Many thanks to @vikingurolafsson for doing this for us. It’s lovely to discover Mr Olafsson’s music from a different angle. I became an instant fan thanks to his Philip Glass album. Hopefully I will someday be able to attend one of his concerts.

This music touches my soul and brought me to tears OMG. Genius… pure joy and beauty THANK YOU NPR

Víkingur Ólafsson, thank you for sharing your love & gifts with us. Very beautiful…wish you could tour South. Love also the versatility of Tiny Desk…Amazing 🙏💗🌟💎

I so needed this today! Thank you Vikingur and NPR tiny desk concerts!

What a beautiful concert! Thank you so much! Also nicely done with the ending where Bach's bobble head was finally approving Víkingur Ólafsson!

Så fantastiskt vackert. Tack Vkingur.

@staffanolofsson8201

Ай бұрын

Jag håller fullständigt med!

Superb in every way. Mr. Olafsson is a very generous artist.

Absolutely beautiful! I started my day with listening to this concert

I'm also a piano player and can describe Vikingur's performance as exquisite. Thank your, npr and tiny desk, for inviting such musicians

Thank you for bringing the Rameau to my screen. It was simply gorgeous.

I’ve been listening to his music all weekend and came across this - thanks algorithms i guess in this case! Thank you!!🦋♥️🌹

I love the heavy rubato, when it's done well it's sumptuous. And the contrasting tempo control in the Goldberg is brilliant. Great performance

@michellemonet4358

Ай бұрын

What is heavy rubato?

Your stunning artistry has inspired me to listen to classical music… an invaluable gift. Deepest gratitude ❤

Happy Birthday Bach♥ And thank you for the rendition, Vikingur.

Finally! Been waiting for this to land. Well worth the wait 😊

Thank you! So beautiful!

Thank you, I love this man and his music. 🎵 Thank you.

Calm and beautiful.

I'm not sure if it's the piano or the sound engineer, but I rarely hear an upright sound this clean and pure. So pretty!

@andreapaul9869

Ай бұрын

Maybe it’s the pianist :)

@IcePeak99

Ай бұрын

Mainly the piano technician and the pianist...

@seheyt

Ай бұрын

and some clever use of half damper register for the lower octaves, it appears. And yes the pedal control and registration are out of this world.

Love it¡ more classical music NPR❤❤❤

Incredibly lovely, Thank You!!!❤❤❤

Vikingur is an awesome name. Well played!

@sighheinrich

Ай бұрын

He is Icelandic but when I read the name in Danish, it looks like "Viking ur" which translates to Wiking Clock" in English :D

Heard him play live last year. The notes from the concert wouldn't part. Couldn't bear to hear any other music for two days. Purity.

What a gift! Thank you very much ♥️♥️♥️

Beautiful. Felt every note inside my chest ❤️🙏🏻 💜

Gratitude for this!

Such talent and joy of beautiful music at its finest on display here.

Beautiful and touching! Thank you!

A beautiful way to start my morning❤❤❤❤

Thank you very much 🥰

Stunning! So gentle yet so powerful. Loved every minute of this performance.

This made my day thank you

What a moving and inspiring find of the day! Thank you

Our privilege to be able to hear you play. The Rameau piece is so beautiful.

Loved every note! Loved your arrangement of Ava Maria! Brava!👏🏻👏🏻

Wonderful performance and stories behind the music. Thank you!

Absolutely beautiful!!

Wonderful. Thank you for showcasing another brilliant talent. ❤❤❤never-electrified (aka classical) music❤❤❤

What a lovely concert! I’m so happy to be introduced to this incredibly talented musician. Thank you.

This was a magical experience. What a brilliant performance.

Beautiful. Thank you for making my morning rich with emotion.

Amazing! Thank you!

This is a special treat❤

Wonderful tinydesk performance - what a great musician and interpreter. inspiring. loving the style too!

Feel like seeing and hearing his playing in my room. Happy.

Brilliant.

I love this so much!