Jóhann Ó. Haraldsson was born on August 19, 1902, the son of Mr. Pálsson, church organist and chorister, in Eyjafjordur, north of Iceland. Haraldsson graduated from high school in 1923. He studied organ with his father and took private lessons in singing for two years. His main profession was in bookkeeping, but he was nevertheless active in the field of music for the greatest part of his life. He had a position as a church organist for a period of time, conducted the Male Choir of Akureyri, north of Iceland, for one year, performed as a singer and an organist on several occasions and wrote newspaper articles on music. His main output in the field of composition was in the field of vocal music, but he composed music for male choir, mixed choir and solo voice. He also composed works for piano and organ.
