The second of the three young musicians who traveled to the conservatory in Leipzig during the second decade of this century was Jon Lorleifsson, bom in 1899. He was the son of a northern farmer who later became post-master general in Reykjavik. Through his piano lessons he had learnt to appreciate Grieg and have his doubts about the greatness of Beethoven’s music. However, he admitted that he had no real understanding “for the long, childish use of triads, although I dared not admit it openly.” At the age of seventeen he obtained permission from parliament to change his surname to Leifs and then set off for Leipzig. His reaction upon meeting the world at large is worthy of quotation: Jon Leifs At the age of seventeen, I got to know a world Jon Leifs (1899 - 1968). that was completely new for me. Everything - Photo: Jon Kaldal from everyday things to highest art - was com- pletely foreign, perhaps even more foreign than a European can experience today upon visiting the East. I saw a tram, a train and many other things for the first time. I often had to keep silent and seem diffident among these central Europeans who almost seemed to belong to an- other race. And it took me several years before I began to understand their everyday behaviour. It never occurred to me to question the Euro- pean civilization’s superiority. (J6n Leifs, Islands kiinstlerische Anregung, Islandia Edition, Reykjavik 1951, p. 19) Jon Leifs came to Leipzig in the autumn and walked along the avenues with the trees shedding their variegated leaves. During the whole of his childhood in Iceland he had never seen anything like it. Equally memorable was the first time I heard an orchestra. It was Liszt’s Faust Symphony. I almost felt that I could throw myself on the ground and cry out in my astonishment. (Jon Leifs, p. 20) 39

(1) Front Board
(2) Front Board
(3) Front Flyleaf
(4) Front Flyleaf
(5) Front Cover
(6) Front Cover
(7) Page [1]
(8) Page [2]
(9) Page I
(10) Page II
(11) Page III
(12) Page IV
(13) Page 1
(14) Page 2
(15) Page 3
(16) Page 4
(17) Page 5
(18) Page 6
(19) Page 7
(20) Page 8
(21) Page 9
(22) Page 10
(23) Page 11
(24) Page 12
(25) Page 13
(26) Page 14
(27) Page 15
(28) Page 16
(29) Page 17
(30) Page 18
(31) Page 19
(32) Page 20
(33) Page 21
(34) Page 22
(35) Page 23
(36) Page 24
(37) Page 25
(38) Page 26
(39) Page 27
(40) Page 28
(41) Page 29
(42) Page 30
(43) Page 31
(44) Page 32
(45) Page 33
(46) Page 34
(47) Page 35
(48) Page 36
(49) Page 37
(50) Page 38
(51) Page 39
(52) Page 40
(53) Page 41
(54) Page 42
(55) Page 43
(56) Page 44
(57) Page 45
(58) Page 46
(59) Page 47
(60) Page 48
(61) Page 49
(62) Page 50
(63) Page 51
(64) Page 52
(65) Page 53
(66) Page 54
(67) Page 55
(68) Page 56
(69) Page 57
(70) Page 58
(71) Page 59
(72) Page 60
(73) Page 61
(74) Page 62
(75) Page 63
(76) Page 64
(77) Page 65
(78) Page 66
(79) Page 67
(80) Page 68
(81) Page 69
(82) Page 70
(83) Page 71
(84) Page 72
(85) Page 73
(86) Page 74
(87) Page 75
(88) Page 76
(89) Page 77
(90) Page 78
(91) Page 79
(92) Page 80
(93) Page 81
(94) Page 82
(95) Page 83
(96) Page 84
(97) Page 85
(98) Page 86
(99) Page 87
(100) Page 88
(101) Page 89
(102) Page 90
(103) Page 91
(104) Page 92
(105) Page 93
(106) Page 94
(107) Page 95
(108) Page 96
(109) Page 97
(110) Page 98
(111) Page 99
(112) Page 100
(113) Page 101
(114) Page 102
(115) Page 103
(116) Page 104
(117) Page 105
(118) Page 106
(119) Page 107
(120) Page 108
(121) Page 109
(122) Page 110
(123) Page 111
(124) Page 112
(125) Page 113
(126) Page 114
(127) Page 115
(128) Page 116
(129) Page 117
(130) Page 118
(131) Page 119
(132) Page 120
(133) Page 121
(134) Page 122
(135) Page 123
(136) Page 124
(137) Page 125
(138) Page 126
(139) Page 127
(140) Page 128
(141) Page 129
(142) Page 130
(143) Page 131
(144) Page 132
(145) Page 133
(146) Page 134
(147) Page 135
(148) Page 136
(149) Page 137
(150) Page 138
(151) Page 139
(152) Page 140
(153) Page 141
(154) Page 142
(155) Page 143
(156) Page 144
(157) Page 145
(158) Page 146
(159) Page 147
(160) Page 148
(161) Page 149
(162) Page 150
(163) Page 151
(164) Page 152
(165) Page 153
(166) Page 154
(167) Page 155
(168) Page 156
(169) Page 157
(170) Page 158
(171) Page 159
(172) Page 160
(173) Page 161
(174) Page 162
(175) Page 163
(176) Page 164
(177) Page 165
(178) Page 166
(179) Page 167
(180) Page 168
(181) Page 169
(182) Page 170
(183) Page 171
(184) Page 172
(185) Page 173
(186) Page 174
(187) Page 175
(188) Page 176
(189) Page 177
(190) Page 178
(191) Back Cover
(192) Back Cover
(193) Rear Flyleaf
(194) Rear Flyleaf
(195) Rear Board
(196) Rear Board
(197) Spine
(198) Fore Edge
(199) Scale
(200) Color Palette