Harpreet Bansal has established herself in recent years as one of Norway’s most fascinating musicians. Deep Indian heritage and modern Western culture flow together in the music of the award- winning violinist and composer. Born in Oslo to Indian parents, she embarked on her musical journey from the age of two with her father – himself a guru of Indian classical music – as her teacher. Her music has been praised by critics internationally for its “radical approach” to Indian raga music, fusing the traditional court music of the Mughals with jazz, classical contemporary music, and folk traditions.
Today her artistic signature reflects the duality of her background, with a musical identity shaped in the interplay between the present and the past, the Western and the Indian. These influences come to fruition in four critically-acclaimed albums so far: Chandra (2015), Samaya (2018), Movements (2020) Parvat (2022) and States of Mind (2025). She has received several prestigious awards and nominations for her work: the Norwegian Society of Composers and Lyricist Award, the Gammleng Award, as well as nominations for OPUS Klassik, the Norwegian Grammy and The Music Publisher’s Price. She has received multiple grants by the Norwegian Arts Council and The Norwegian Society of Composers to pursue her art.
Harpreet has received several commissions ranging from orchestral to chamber and vocal music, as well as film and theatre music. Her first full-feature movie as composer ‘Listen up!’ premiered in theatres 2023 and was a huge success with critics and audiences alike, and her score was nominated for The Norwegian Music Publisher’s Award.
She is in high demand as a soloist, festival musician and artistic collaborator, performing throughout Scandinavia and Europe. Since 2021 she has collaborated with the rap duo KARPE, Norway’s biggest act known for their multi-layered music and spectacular live shows.In addition to her own concert activity, she curates a concert series of international traditional music in Oslo supported by the Sparebanken DNB Foundation.
Harpreet plays a violin made by Giovanni Battista Rogeri (Brescia) in 1690, generously on loan from the Dextra Foundation.