Guro Gravem Johansen, vocals

Torgrim Sollid, trumpet

Håkon Storm-Mathisen, guitar

Sebastian Haugen, double bass

The band says about this remarkable release:

" In this project, we have indulged in the songs from the musical West Side Story, with music by Leonard Bernstein and libretto by Stephen Sondheim. The musical, from 1957, addresses themes like migration, ethnic tensions, poverty, identity, honor, dignity and love without judgment, themes that are at stake even today.

We have played with the songs and put our own marks on them, inspired by the clear rhythmic orientation in the originals. The underlying drama in the story is kept at a cool distance. In our retelling of West Side Story, we have avoided caricatures and dramatic devices, and instead embraced the musical material with our intimate and improvised jazz expression. Along with the hope that there, “somewhere and somehow”, will be a safe place for every human being."