Norwegian-Indian Harpreet Bansal is an outstanding representative of Indian classical music and has received significant international recognition for her deeply personal interpretation of the Indian raga tradition. In the concert project Varsakala, Bansal, the Song Circus trio, and cellist Svante Henrysson perform new music composed by Harpreet Bansal.

Varsakala is Sanskrit for ‘monsoon’ and refers to both a rain ritual and a musical scale derived from the Indian raga tradition. The text fragments in the work are in Sanskrit/Hindi

Swedish Svante Henryson is a unique musician. He is a virtuoso on three instruments, an orchestra composer, and an outstanding improviser across musical genres and languages. Whether it’s jazz ensembles, world music, rock bands (including collaborations with Yngwie Malmsteen), or symphony orchestras, the expression of Svante Henryson’s cello is immediately recognizable. As a double bassist, he has been the principal bassist for both the Oslo Philharmonic and the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra. He has composed music for smaller ensembles, concertos for cello and electric bass guitar, symphonic music, church music, chamber music, and jazz. Among the performers he has composed for are Anne-Sofie von Otter, Elvis Costello, Martin Fröst, and Roland Pöntinen. As an improviser, he has collaborated with Steve Gadd, Jon Balke, Terje Rypdal, Wolfgang Muthspiel, Wayne Krantz, and Arve Henriksen, among others. He has received numerous awards, including Chamber Music Piece of the Year in 2010 for Sonata for Solo Violin (Swedish Music Publishers’ Association), Jazz Musician of the Year («Jazzkatten») from Swedish Radio in 2014, and the Nordic Council Music Prize in 2015.

Harpreet Bansal has established herself in recent years as one of Norway’s most fascinating musicians. Her unique approach to the deep-rooted Indian raga tradition draws inspiration from jazz, folk music and contemporary classical music.  She is one of Norway’s most sought-after performers, regularly appearing at prestigious festivals at home and abroad. She has performed her music as soloist with such distinguished ensembles as The Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and The Norwegian Radio Orchestra.  

Harpreet has released three albums on the Jazzland Recordings label with her group Harpreet Bansal Band, for which she has garnered a Norwegian Grammy Nomination (2019) and the prestigious NOPA Awards (2021). Her latest album Parvat, where she appears with The Norwegian Radio Orchestra, was nominated in six categories for the OPUS Klassik awards in 2022. 

Harpreet plays a violin made by Giovanni Batista Rogeri in 1690, generously provided by the Dextra Musica Foundation.