VÍKINGUR ÓLAFSSON HITS THE ONE BILLION STREAMS MILESTONE
“His virtuosity is breathtaking” (Diapason)
25 NOVEMBER 2024 (TORONTO, ON) – Rounding off the year in style, Víkingur Ólafsson has just surpassed the magnificent landmark of one billion career streams worldwide. The numbers have soared steadily throughout 2024 – his Goldberg Variations album alone has now garnered over 88 million streams, while his brand-new Bach EP CONTINUUM has already achieved a streaming figure of over 14 million. And Víkingur retains his crown as the most streamed living pianist of the year for performances of Bach.
Adding to the already impressive list of accolades, Ólafsson also received his first ever GRAMMY Award® nomination for his reading of the Goldberg Variations in the Best Classical Instrumental Solo category. The same album won the prestigious OPUS KLASSIK Bestseller award and Ólafsson has just been named Musical America’s Instrumentalist of the Year 2024.
“The fact that Víkingur Ólafsson is reaching an extraordinary streaming milestone and receiving his first GRAMMY nomination at the same time may seem like a coincidence, but there is also a great inner logic behind it: Víkingur inspires both a younger generation of culturally curious listeners and the established classical music scene like no other artist,” says Dr Clemens Trautmann, President Deutsche Grammophon. “Heartfelt congratulations to this outstanding pianist and the smoothly connected teams behind him, including his management, our PR and live partners and – last but not least – my colleagues at the Yellow Label.”
“When Víkingur joined the label, we started with a total monthly listenership in the triple digits across streaming platforms,” adds Christian Badzura, DG Vice President A&R New Repertoire. “One billion streams to date proves that with supreme artistic integrity, unique choice of repertoire, exceptional interpretations, and a tirelessly focused team great things are possible.”
“Víkingur is an exceptional artist who has inspired us from the very beginning to explore new, innovative paths of creativity.” notes Marc Fritsch, Senior Marketing Director Special Projects at Deutsche Grammophon "He stands among the most celebrated pianists of our time and we are proud to be part of this unique success story.”
Ólafsson’s personal Bach journey is far from over, however. October saw the release of CONTINUUM, a six-track EP of piano arrangements of cantata movements and other short works by Bach, four of them realised by Ólafsson himself. In the pianist’s own words, CONTINUUM is “the first instalment in what will be an ongoing Bach diary”.
In February and March 2025 Ólafsson will be reunited with fellow DG artist Yuja Wang for the North American continuation of the high-profile duo tour they launched in Reykjavík in October 2024 and went on to perform across Europe (Berlin recital soon available to stream on STAGE+). The pair are now set to appear at such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall (19 February) and Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles (26 February).