• Year Of The Voice | Aurélie Nyirabikali Lierman

2015 IN A NUTSHELL ? A crazy episode with lots of new beginnings, debuts, premieres and spontaneous collaborations across 3 continents in 7 countries. Funny enough: there’s was no world tour planned, it just evolved that way as the year passed. But no complaints: I feel extremely privileged with all these travel experiences and fully embrace that I can combine my art with a life as a global citizen – with these confusing times we’re living in I often wander for how much longer. But nevertheless I am blessed for the time being and I’d wish every single person in the world could move as freely as I have done over the passed 12 months.

Over summer I had my very first vocal solo performances ever… in Hollywood and continued on my very first tour in the USA. Shortly after that I collaborated with Nicholas Calvin on new installations for (probably) the very first sound and video art exhibition ever in Tanzania (über proud). Right after the opening of that expo went sound hunting in Dar Es Salaam and Zanzibar. After another instant swop of continents and climates found myself in remote fairy tale like forests of Southeastern Estonia brooding on new artistic ideas (with collective iii and Q-02). Took a small detour via Finland, came back home and dived into a new Brussels based collaboration with Lazara Rossell Albear/Sammy Baloji. Where the hell did this crazy year start? Oh wait, … Yeah! Another memorable collaboration with Vincent Meessen for an exhibition at Kunsthalle Basel in Switzerland.

THAT’S IT? NO ! Much more happened in between, before and after.. with a numerous amount of inspiring artists/new made friends. And there are too little words to express my gratitude to everyone who has been part of my dreamlike artistic journey. Right now in the midsts of developing new ideas and then to give thanks to all beautiful things that have happened, I’ll come back in 2016 with new music and more performances.

2016 THE YEAR OF THE VOICE

The year 2016 will be at least as exciting as I’ll take new artistic steps. I will focus an entire year solely on the idea of the voice: throughout my work as a composer and a sound artist. But also more and more as a performer of new music: I can hardly believe – and I feel very lucky – that several composers are in this very moment writing brand new compositions especially for my voice.

In 2016 alone I’ll world premiere new vocal work by Henry Vega (USA), Semay Wu (UK), Mikolaj Laskowski (PL), Renan Zelada (CHL), Sasha Thielen (DE), Nikos Kokolakis (GR), Leo Svirky (USA), Michalis Paraskakis (GR), Ngo Hong Quang (VNM), Emile Tan Erten (TR) and many more.

Also very excited about several new commissions and collaborations in which the voice will also play a key element: a new sound installation for Slagwerk Den Haag (NL), a new video and sound installation by visual artist Toshie Takeuchi (JP), and a set of new compositions for percussionist Marianna Soroka (PL).

Curious about the newest vocal sound around? Check my agenda once in a while for any updates popping up. Meanwhile HAPPY HOLIDAYS and SEE YOU in 2016 !