Inger Hannisdal: North South East West

Violinist and composer Inger Hannisdal’s debut album ‘North South East West’ does a deep-dive into the world of quarter tones, manifesting the sound of a diverse, multicultural Norway.
Hannisdal’s microtonal folk-jazz fuses influences from Arabic maqam and Norwegian folk music, crafting an original and accomplished musical language. Her unique musical background contributes to ‘North South East West’’s distinctive sound: After growing up in Oslo’s culturally diverse eastern suburbs, she went on to study Arabic music at Université Antonine in Lebanon, where she also joined the popular Syrian folk music group Assa’aleek. On ‘North, South, East, West’, she draws inspiration from the common traits of Arabic and Norwegian folk music: quarter tones and uneven time. The result is music that is evocative of both traditions, while at the same time sounding not much like neither.
Recorded with a five-person band including Norwegian accordion virtuoso Frode Haltli on quarter-tone accordion, Moroccan saxophonist and percussionist Khalid Laaouam, Adrian Myhr on double bass and Slovak drummer Michaela Antalová; ‘North South East West’ is both an experiment in new approaches to tonality, and a love letter to multiculturalism.
The album features cover art by Lebanese artist and illustrator Karen Keyrouz from Samandal Comics and Zeez collective.