[Pre Order] Alice Sara Ott - Johann Johannson: Piano Works - LP *

Release Date: April 24, 2026

Alice Sara Ott presents some of Jóhannsson’s best-loved music, newly reimagined for solo piano

Pianist Alice Sara Ott presents the work of Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson (1969–2018) as never heard before. She has made the world premiere recordings of a new volume of piano transcriptions – published as a limited edition by Faber Music – which capture the essence of 30 of his most famous works. As composer Dustin O’Halloran writes in the introduction to the book, “Jóhann’s music, in its timelessness, will forever remain vibrant and alive”.

The selection spans Jóhannsson’s career, from studio albums such as Englabörn and Orphée to the pioneering scores he wrote for documentaries or feature films such as Copenhagen Dreams, Personal Effects and the Golden-Globe-winning The Theory of Everything. Two digital EPs will be released by Deutsche Grammophon before the end of 2025, with the full 30-track album following next spring.

Though Alice Sara Ott never met Jóhann Jóhannsson, she had always loved his music. In preparing for this unique project, she spoke to several of his friends and colleagues to gain greater insight into his work and processes: “As I worked on these pieces – internalising the musical architecture, shapes and language of Jóhann’s music – it actually felt like a very personal dialogue with him.”

Alice then travelled to Reykjavík in July 2024 to record all 30 tracks at the studio of Grammy-nominated producer and engineer Bergur Þórisson, who had himself worked with Jóhannsson in the past. She played most of the pieces on Þórisson’s old upright piano, having fallen in love with the sense of nostalgia conjured by its felted sound.

“What’s so incredible about Jóhann Jóhannsson’s music,” concludes Ott, “is how his compositions, originally written for larger ensembles and different instruments, translate so beautifully to the piano. Within this more focused and intimate sound world, the writing reveals hidden nuances and enhances the purity and clarity that are so intrinsic to his music.”

LP 1 Side A
1. Bað
2. Odi et Amo/Krókódíll
3. Englabörn
4. Jói & Karen
5. Flugeldar II from 'Dís'
6. Já, Hemmi Minn?from 'Dís'
7. Ruslpóstur from 'Dís'

LP 1 Side B
1. The Sun’s Gone Dim and the Sky’s Turned Black
2. Melodia (iii)
3. Theme from 'Varmints'
4. Dressing Up from 'Personal Effects'
5. Linda & Walter?from 'Personal Effects'
6. Indian Wedding from 'Personal Effects'
7. He Says It’s The Future from 'Copenhagen Dreams'
8. Eleven Thousand Six Hundred and Sixty-Nine Died of Natural Causes from 'Copenhagen Dreams'

LP 2 Side A
1. Flight from the City
2. Innocence?from 'Free the Mind'
3. Will’s Story?I from 'Free the Mind'
4. Time to Say Goodbye from 'White Black Boy'
5. Payphone from 'McCanick'
6. A Game of Croquet from 'The Theory of Everything'
7. A Model of the Universe from 'The Theory of Everything'
8. The Theory of Everything from 'The Theory of Everything'

LP 2 Side B
1. Beauty from 'Blind Massage'
2. A Sparrow Alighted Upon Our Shoulder
3. By the Roes, and by the Hinds of the Field
4. Good Morning, Midnight
5. The Drowned World
6. The Radiant City
7. Be Over from 'The Shadow Play'