Andrew Balfour's Medieval Inuit

Andrew Balfour's Medieval Inuit featuring Inuit throat singers Aleatra Sammurtok and Zeann Manernaluk was performed on October 29, 2022, at the Westgate Collegiate in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

For more information about this concert, including digital program, performers, and Dead of Winter, visit:

Into the Unknown -Seagull Song (Aleatra and Zeann), drones, overtones, windtubes, low groans, flag whips, viola, percussion
Raven sings of sadness – Viola with choir whispers (“God made the world, But Raven made it first”)
Inuit 1 (Into the Cold) – Dead of Winter, viola, percussion, Cold Song (Aleatra and Zeann)
The People - Our people, Our land (Aleatra and Zeann) with Dead of Winter drone
Nunarjuaq (The Earth) – Dead of Winter, viola, percussion
Interlude – Viola and percussion
Singing the Story - Competition Song (Aleatra and Zeann)
Tavauvusi (Goodbye to all) – Dead of Winter, windtubes, flag whips, viola, percussion,
Love Song (Aleatra and Zeann)

In eight short movements, Medieval Inuit creates an unforgettable soundscape that combines Inuit Throat Song with drones, overtones, wind and sea sounds, viola and percussion interludes, and the stunning Balfourian choral dissonances that we have all come to know and love. What better way to convey the timeless power and beauty of the northern landscape? What better way to celebrate that first contact between two singing peoples, the Inuit and their Scandinavian visitors? Underneath all this power and beauty lies the recurring statement, first whispered and later sung by the choir, “Very well, God made the earth, but Raven made it first”.

This concert was made possible with the generous support of Canada Council for the Arts, The Winnipeg Foundation, Manitoba Arts Council, Winnipeg Arts Council, FCMM, and the Richardson Foundation.