Yellow Sisters

2006, where Mr. Václav Havel was also in attendance to present the Homo Homini Prize for extraordinary contribution to human rights. Another momentous occasion was the band’s live TV appearance at TýTý (a Television Awards ceremony) in April 2006.

The band has had its current line-up since 2005, the same year Yellow Sisters recorded their first demo CD. In 2006 Yellow Sisters became finalists in the Colours Talents competition, organized by Indie Records and Colours of Ostrava Festival; they eventually went on in June that year to win the prestigious first prize, which gave them the opportunity to record their debut album. Yellow Sisters album, to be called Singalana, was realesed on 24.1.2006.

Yellow Sisters will be touring the Czech Republic and Slovakia on their Singalana Tour in spring 2007 to coincide with the album’s release. Soon after will follow appearances at international festivals; the band will then approach Europe and other continents with their music. Yellow Sisters offer a 60 – 80 minute set with a colourful program, consisting of genre-defying original songs with African inspiration.

Yellow Sisters:

Antonia Nyass (Éterity)
Bára Vaculíková (Yellow Family, Forbidden Fruit, Funky Feast, Levelrise)
Léňa (Yellow Family, Babylon Station, DC Band, Tomato 22)
Lucie Hawa Goldin (Éterity, dancer and choreogrpher in TidiTade)

Antonia and Hawa met in a band called Éterity, where they discovered a mutual love of experimenting with voice and rhythm. Both have strong connections with Africa, which is reflected in their art work and particularly in the way they work with rhythm, and in the depth and emotion of their lyrics and vocals. Léňa and Bára have collaborated as a vocal duo on various projects. They originally formed Yellow Sisters as an a cappella trio while travelling throughout Europe with their street-performance show. After a few music missions (Berlin, Madrid, Las Palmas – Gran Canaria), which culminated in Gambia with the artistic project Czech-Gambian Connection, they united with Antonia and Hawa and gave a new dimension to Yellow Sisters. In Summer 2006 Yellow Sisters joined another project Senegal Meets Prague, inspired by African traditional music and dance, and performed at shows at the Ponec Theatre in Prague and at the Bazilika Theatre in České Budějovice.

 

 

Yellow Sisters – individual biographies

Antonia Tereza Nyass was born in Prague, where she studied graphic design. For some time Antonia used her artistic talent in interior design, graphic design and body art. She also worked with avant-garde dance and theatre group Faux Pas, but subsequently fell deeply for music. She started to work with her voice in an female a cappella group called Eterity and as a percussionist for Monika Rebcova’s dance group BaToCu. Antonia also performs with her husband Papis Nyass, originally from the Gambia, in their project Mama Africa as well as on other projects.

Antonia is a devoted wife and mother of two, and since 2005 has also been a devoted Yellow Sisters member.

Lucie Hawa Goldin

Dancer, choreographer and singer HawaLu is enchanted by different cultures. She has travelled and studied in Central and Northern America and has also visited the Gambia in Africa. She studied FF UK in Prague and for 7 years she worked in various fields of art therapy. In 2002 she and her husband Ephraim Goldin founded a group TiDiTaDe, which plays and dances to West African rhythms. HawaLu also teaches African dance. She started to experiment with her voice in a female a cappella called Eterity. The remaining two of the 13 original members, HawaLu and Antonia connected with Léňa and Bára in 2005. Yellow Sisters was borne of their mutual love for nature, Africa and the wild female spirit. HawaLu has a son named Samba, who is an eternal inspiration to her.

Bára Vaculíková comes from a musical family, but fully devoted herself to singing only after finishing journalism studies at Charles University in Prague. She started as a vocalist in afro-hip-hop band Forbidden Fruit and later created the base of the original repertoir of Funky Fiest band. She appeared in a number of other projects like Gang-ala-Basta, Levelrise etc. After a one year stay in Australia she performed some of her songs with soul-jazz project Yellow Family, where she took part on the vocal arrangement and with singers Léňa and Markéta Foukalová she got to know the power of female multivoice. She cooperates on an improvisational basis with the Flying Carpet /Létající koberec/ and number of Djs, but first and foremost she shares her life journey with the Yellow Sisters Léňa, Hawa, Toni and their families. Bara dances and sings for one heart.

Léňa

Léňa has been devoted to music since childhood. She graduated from Elementary Musical School as a flute player. She took up solo singing in 1999 and is currently studying jazz singing at the Jaroslav Ježek Musical Conservatory. Léňa is also graduate of the University of Economics in Prague.

Léňa has taken part in many different bands and projects: Babylon Station (2002 - CD Original Recordings), Fullharmoniq, Tomato 22 and others. In 2001 and 2002 she was working together with Dalibor Cidlinský and his DC Band - P. Vavřík, J. K. Stivín, I. Myslikovjan (2001 - CD Broskve v Karamelu, 2002 - 1st place in the nation-wide composers competition “Zlín Talent“). Between 2000 - 2004 Léňa worked on her solo repertoire, which led her to form her own band Yellow Family. She also travelled around Europe and visited Africa with a street-performance programme with Bára. Léňa has been a member of Yellow Sisters since 2005.