Papagena is an a cappella vocal group set up to explore the wealth of music from medieval times to the present day written specifically for female voices. No props, microphones or gimmicks, just five stunning voices form Papagena. The singers are all classically trained and include amongst their number a conductor, saxophonist, composer, opera and oratorio soloists.

 

But the group’s programming defies pigeonholing; Papagena juxtaposes classical repertoire with traditional folk, medieval and contemporary music to create programmes that can span nine centuries, from 12th century abbess Hildegard of Bingen to Joni Mitchell, from Byzantine hymns and lilting Celtic ballads to Norwegian lullabies, from Purcell to Katy Perry.   Papagena writes and arranges some of its own material and also commissions new arrangements and pieces from an eclectic range of composers, including recent offerings from Jim Clements, John Duggan and Errollyn Wallen with a future commission from Janet Wheeler,

 

The group has toured the UK extensively, giving performances at numerous Music Festivals and events. Papagena has released two recordings on the SOMM Recordings label, the latest of which, Hush! was released in Spring 2020 and the previous album The Darkest Midnight reached #1 in the Amazon download charts and #6 in the UK Classical charts in December 2018.

 

The singers are Imogen Russell, Lizzie Drury, Suzzie Vango*, Shivani Rattan & Sarah Tenant-Flowers*

*directors