“Improvisation that, in spite of its experimental edge, feels decidedly human.”
    — The Wire


For Zosha Warpeha, focused listening is as central to her practice as creating sound. It leads her work as a composer and performer, defined by its hushed nuance that encourages others to lean in and engage thoughtfully. Her history in vernacular music, where tunes are passed down aurally across centuries, helped her develop the ear that now leads her beyond the expected, into settings of collaborative improvisation and rapt introspection. Resonance is an important aspect of her practice, as embodied by her use of Hardanger d’amore, an instrument with five bowed and five sympathetic strings closely related to traditional Hardanger fiddles of Norway. Warpeha positions her music expansively, unmooring it from its roots and consistently finding new avenues of exploration. 

Warpeha’s two acclaimed solo full-length albums, silver dawn (Relative Pitch, 2024) and I grow accustomed to the dark (Outside Time, 2026) showcase the eloquent power of her compositions. As her practice has grown, she has developed an expressive, individualistic style that draws on extensive knowledge of her instrument’s history in folk traditions, countered by an austere, devotional quality maintained by focus and precision. Repetition, a masterful control of timbre and quietude, and a patient sense of harmonic development create an uncanny sense of time dilation. The Wire’s James Gui called I grow accustomed to the dark “Otherworldy…these are compositions that rely on nuances of the performing body, an assembly of sonic gestures that beckon your ear to lean in closer,” and Songlines Magazine praised the album as “a highly considered exploration of sound as physical space, performed with curiosity and intention.” 

Warpeha’s skills as a thoughtful listener and performer have led to her deep integration into New York’s vast network of improvisers and experimentalists. She has ongoing duos with drummer Carlo Costa and bassist Tristan Kasten-Krause, and has improvised live alongside Tongue Depressor’s Henry Birdsey, Leila Bordreuil, Michael Foster, Webb Crawford, Cleek Schrey, and more. She has released two albums of collaborative improvisation: Orbweaver with Bolivian sound artist Mariel Terán (Outside Time, 2025) and A Far Within with cellist Isidora Edwards and violinist Biliana Voutchkova (Relative Pitch, 2026). Her Hardanger can be heard on recordings by Big Thief, Ka Baird, Lonnie Holley, Bill Frisell, Will Epstein, and many more. Live, Warpeha has joined groups led by a wide variety of musicians, including experimental electronic musician Elori Saxl, Americana mainstay Iris DeMent, and Irish folk band Amble. Notable performances have been hosted by Roulette Intermedium, ISSUE Project Room, KM28, Cafe OTO, Rhizome, Lampo, KRAAK Festival, Frequency Festival, Pioneer Works, Rewire Festival, Ars Nova Workshop, MATA Festival, and more. 

Warpeha is currently based in Brooklyn, NY and was a 2025 Artist-in-Residence at ISSUE Project Room. Her work has also been supported by the US-Norway Fulbright Foundation, Jerome Foundation, Minnesota State Arts Board, and the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. She holds bachelor’s degrees from the New School of Jazz & Contemporary Music and Eugene Lang College in New York City and a master’s degree in Nordic folk music performance from the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo. She performs with instruments and bows built by Salve Håkedal, Peter Seman, Paul Wilson, Niels Røine, and Andreas Grütter.