Bjork to perform at Iceland festival during total solar eclipse

Icelandic artist Bjork is hosting a one-day outdoor festival timed to coincide with a total solar eclipse that will briefly darken western Iceland on Wednesday.

Called Echolalia, the festival is being held at Vidadstadatun, a park in Hafnarfjordur, about 10 kilometers (6 miles) southwest of the capital, Reykjavik.

Wednesday’s eclipse marks the first total solar eclipse visible from Icelandic territory since 1954. The eclipse’s shadow will sweep across Greenland, Iceland and Spain, drawing astronomers, tourists and music fans to Iceland for a front-row view of the celestial event.

Organizers said the site lies in the path of totality and will experience about one minute and four seconds of complete darkness when the moon fully covers the sun at around 5.48 pm local time (1748GMT).

Bjork is scheduled to play a DJ set rather than a full live concert. Venezuelan producer Arca and Icelandic acts Ronja and Sideproject are also on the bill, along with other artists in the lineup.

The gathering continues Bjork’s long-running Manakvold series of informal dance evenings traditionally held under a full moon, with this edition instead centered on the eclipse.

Official solar eclipse glasses are provided with tickets.