Tirill

Tirill started her musical absorption creating endless songs on the 18th century house organ her music-loving family had at home. This organ had two pedals, one for each foot to press. The pedals were quite heavy, and must be the underlying reason for her songs' laidback tempo.

She went to Rudolf Steiner School, where music is a basic and integral ingredient in the curriculum. Instruments like flute and violin were obligatory and continue to be an essential part of Tirill's music. So are the other musical influences which colored her adolescence: classical guitar, piano and ethnic percussion, which were self studies and drums, vocals, jazz guitar and arranging which were a part of a musical education at NISS (Nordic Institute for Scene and Studio) in Oslo. After eight years playing in a classical orchestra, she joined a medieval orchestra called Schola Instrumentalis, playing mostly Andalusian and Arabic medieval music. At the same time she played violin in the progressive rock (and much more) group White Willow. Other projects worth mentioning are Dansende Alver (lyrical progressive rock), Bella Devas (female dramatic, traumatic waltzes and tangos), Dis, and Unicorn (symphonic pop rock).

Influences to Tirill's song-writing and arranging style have been many, and classical, folk and the progressive rock scene of the '70s are undoubtedly some of them. Then there were the Moody Blues and Barclay James Harvest with their haunting melodies, and later on, solo artists such as Nick Drake with his fluid and excellent guitar playing and poetical lyrics. Today's hero is the Greek singer songwriter Pantelis Thalassinos, who has been the main source of inspiration since his first solo record Nyxtas Kimata (Waves of Night), released in 1995.

After breaking up with all earlier commitments, such as bands and boyfriends, Tirill started preparing her solo carrier by recording demos in the evenings (studies during the day), followed up by serious recordings at Lydkjøkkenet with co-producer and putting-up-good-vibes-engineer Øystein Vesaas (during the day....for two years!). A Dance with the Shadows was released in December 2005 by The Wild Places and label director Michael Piper, who is the last existing sympathetic and truly sensitive person in the record company business. (How did we find you?)

Tirill's music is dreamy and sensitive, dark and earthly, light and ethereal....to mention a few words again, but the best descriptions are to be found here. —Courtesy Calabash Music