Thousands watched total eclipse together at Iceland festival

About 7,000 people attended Echolalia, a total eclipse festival organised by Björk and Smekkleysa at Víðistaðatún in Hafnarfjörður on Wednesday, mbl.is reports. The event marked the eclipse and the 40th anniversary of Smekkleysa.

Garcia Events organised and staged the festival in cooperation with Smekkleysa and other partners.

The programme began in the afternoon. When the eclipse reached its peak, the music stopped and thousands of visitors watched it together in silence.

Björk performed a special DJ set around the eclipse. Other performers included Arca, Sideproject and Ronja Jóhannsdóttir. A varied programme of workshops also took place alongside the concerts.

“Echolalia was a unique day when people from Iceland and around the world came together at Víðistaðatún to experience a moment that will not come again. The moment when the music stopped and thousands of people experienced the total eclipse together in silence was especially powerful,” Egill Ástráðsson said on behalf of the organisers.

A couple also got married at Víðistaðatún during the festival.