With Sincerest Gratitude

Björk’s album covers

If there is one single person who has inspired me most in this life it is definitely Björk, and since today is her 50th birthday, it seemed only right to mark it with a brief post here on my blog.

She has inspired me as a performer, with a voice that can transcend from being frail and childlike to guttural and powerful with ease; as a lyricist, writing songs that read like poems; as a composer, crafting beautiful string and orchestral arrangements; as a visual artist, creating incredible music videos and costumes; as an innovator, commissioning mind-blowing bespoke instruments, such as one that harnesses the power of gravity; as a teacher, creating an interactive music programme now part of national curriculums that teach children about music; and as a human being, embracing and pioneering the use of new technology whilst campaigning for the preservation of nature.

I could keep gushing but instead, I’ll end with just a tiny selection of some of my favourite songs by this wonderful artist, the first of which allows us to hear her sing in her native Icelandic, and ending with the song that made me fall in love with her work in the first place.

—

Who inspires you?