Aquabella

Few German vocal groups have sung as widely as Aquabella. The Berlin ensemble, one of the country's rare all-female a cappella groups, builds its programmes around world music, drawing on material in more than twenty languages and working closely with native speakers to get the phrasing right. Five singers and one percussionist give the voices a rhythmic drive, and the group's stated appetite for experiment has pushed it towards a fresh, original sound. Its shows aim to bring the cultures of the world a little closer and to build understanding among audiences.

Aquabella were founded in the mid-1990s by Ulrike Siems and Gisela Knorr. Their first programme, Liebeslieder aus aller Welt, appeared in 1995, followed by Nani Dschann in 2001 and the winter show Kykellia in 2004. They have toured across Europe, to Taiwan and, on one occasion, to New Zealand. Their 2009 appearance in Graz brought silver, an audience prize and a special award, and in 2011 they took silver at the Vocal Marathon in Rijeka. The 2017 programme Jubilee marked twenty years together, and a 2021 programme, Heimatlose Lieder finden ein Zuhause, led to the 2022 album Heimatlose Lieder.