Interesting Icelander for November 2025: Magnús R. Einarsson
- Phyllis Smith
- 4 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Phyllis Smith
We never know who we are going to meet when we travel, be it near of far. Phyllis tells us of their trip to Iceland and the people they met over dinner. They were talking with someone named Magnús. Here's what she had to say about that encounter...
During our last trip to Iceland, we took the ferry over to the Westman Islands to stay for a day or two. It’s worth a visit. We did a tour around the Island on a zodiac. It’s a fabulous view of the area. We toured the main island, met some fantastic people and had some amazing meals.
One evening, we chose Tanginn for dinner. It’s at the harbour, close to the ferry. We arrived just before a ferry was due to load and leave so it quickly emptied and we got a table at the window where we could watch the comings and goings on the water.
David and I struck up a conversation with the couple from Chicago at the table next to us. I urged the woman to try the cod in garlic butter. Another couple who spoke Icelandic took the table on the other side of us.
We became entranced by a gannet, a seabird, who was struggling to steal leftover fries off a table on the deck outside our window. The Icelandic man joined us in our watch and shared his local insights.
He told us his name was Magnús and he was from East Iceland, in one of the fjords near Egilsstaðir. His lady friend was Kristín and she was the director of the volcano museum on Vestmanyær. We promised that we definitely had plans to visit the museum the next day (worth a visit!) We asked Magnús what he did, but he responded, “Oh, I’m retired. I just play guitar sometimes.”
Something triggered my curiosity about this man who “just played guitar sometimes” …
I knew Kristín was connected to Eldheimer, the volcano museum. That led me to Magnús Ragnar Einarsson (I493626). Yes, he played guitar sometimes. I was stunned to learn that we had been chatting with THE Magnús Einarsson, the renowned musician and producer.
Magnús Ragnar Einarsson (1952-) was born and raised in Seyðisfjörður, where his musical inclinations seem to have developed early. He is noted for playing in many bands, playing bass and sometimes other instruments, and he sings too.
Like many Icelanders, he worked at multiple jobs. He was a teacher in Seyðisfjörður during the winters and spent summers in Reykjavík as a sought-after studio player on numerous albums.
Wanderlust kicked in, so Magnús moved to Italy in 1979, where he lived for three years. Later, he would travel through Asia, and he also lived in France and Spain.
He returned to Iceland in 1982 and picked up where he had left off in the music scene. He either founded or worked with several bands until 1985, when he became a program producer at the Icelandic National Broadcasting Corporation. He hosted radio programs over the next few decades. He was also the music director on Channel 2 for a long time. In addition to his radio programming, he played on other artists’ albums. And he became a highly sought-after mandolin player after purchasing an instrument in Ireland and gaining proficiency.
Over the years, Magnús has appeared with a long list of bands and artists on their albums and in concert. Magnús also performs on his own with original material, in addition to composing music for amateur theatre groups. Magnús has also been credited for composing or sound on a couple of movies in the 2000s.
Did I check the Icelandic Roots database to see if we were related? Certainly, I did. Of course, we’re related, but not closely. If only I’d known all this when I had him in front of me! But that seems to be Iceland. You never know who will strike up a conversation with you.
Sources:
"Hringsól: Magnús Einarsson" (05 Nov 2012) in Hlaðvarp RÚV. [audio in Icelandic] Retrieved from: https://www.ruv.is/utvarp/spila/hringsol/15043/4feo9q
"Magnús R. Einarsson" (n.d.) in Icelandic Film Centre. Retrieved from:
"Magnus R. Einarsson" (n.d.) in Bænda Ferðir: Farm Tour Guides. Retrieved from:
Gunnarsson, Björgvin. "Fyrrum dagskrárstjóri um sjónvarpsfréttir Rúv: 'Svona klisjur pirra mig eða hlægja eftir atvikum' " (17 Mar 2023) in Mannlíf. Retrieved from:
Ingadottir, Snæfriður. (2019) “Svaf á ströndinni og ferðaðist á puttanum” in mbl.is. Retrieved from:
Jonsson, Helgi. "Magnus Einarsson [2] (1952-)" (27 Jun 2019) in Glatkistan. Retrieved from:
