By: Jaclyn Breeze — Laufey is a classical and jazz musician from Reykjavík, Iceland. She was born in 1999 to a very musical family. Her mother and grandfather were both violinists, as is her twin sister. Laufey chose to learn the cello and had a lot of success when she was young. At only 15 she was playing as a soloist with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. She was also a finalist on Iceland’s Got Talent as a singer, and a semi-finalist on The Voice Iceland when she was in her early teens. After high school, she attended Berklee College of Music in Boston.
She released her first single in 2020, followed by her first EP. Both became extremely popular right away and received attention from major artists and critics. She won her first Grammy Award in 2023 for her second album, Bewitched.
She says that her goal as a musician is to bring jazz and classical music to her generation. She has sold out tours in North America, Asia, and Australia, and she was the most streamed jazz artist on Spotify in 2022.
You can learn more about Laufey on her website: https://www.laufeymusic.com/
Listen to some of her work here:
The cello is a member of the string family. It has a very large range (can go very high and low), and can be plucked or played with a bow. It has four strings and sits on the floor while the musician plays. Which other instruments does the cello look like? How is it similar to or different from the other instruments in its family?
