All-Women A Cappella Ensemble Lyyra Announces Debut Album Rising

Listen to “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square” HERE

January 30, 2026 - Today, the new, all-women a cappella ensemble Lyyraannounces their debut album, Rising, due out March 27 via Warner Classics. A bright, exhilarating blend of upper voices, the groundbreaking treble ensemble is the only professional women’s a cappella sextet based in the US. Their announcement arrives alongside “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square,” the album’s dreamlike new single.

With "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square," Lyyra breathes new life into the beloved romantic standard, offering a soaring harmony that showcases the charm of their forthcoming album Rising. From early European Renaissance music to modern American music, Rising explores love and perseverance through Lyyra’s unique blend of upper voices.

Listen to the new single “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square” HERE.

Formed by The VOCES8 Foundation, Lyyra – made up of the six bright singers Anna Crumley, MaryRuth Miller, Elizabeth Tait, Aryssa Leigh Burrs, Ingrid Johnson, and Cecille Elliott – takes its name from the constellation of stars in homage to Orpheus’s lyre in Greek mythology. The group comes from diverse traditions and backgrounds in classical, jazz, pop, and folk, which is represented in their repertoire that spans genres and decades. Risingbrilliantly exhibits Lyyra’s full, exhilarating spectrum of women’s vocal artistry; the multi-genred album forms a constellation of connections between time periods – from medieval to modern – and features brand new compositions and arrangements.

“As a newly formed ensemble, our road has been full of uncertainty and incredible growth. Along the way, we’ve found deep community through music,” shares the ensemble. “This recording is a reflection of that journey, and of the powerful connection we’ve built. Our album is an ode to hope and togetherness.”

The album’s opening song, “The Hymn of Acxiom” by singer-songwriter Vienna Teng, muses on a modern concern, humanity in the digital age, through an ethereal harmonization that is magically ambiguous of era. This flows into the album’s oldest selection, 12th-century composer Hildegard von Bingen’s “Caritas abundat” (“love abounds”), a step back in time that feels soulfully seamless. Other highlights include the colorful “Dusk in June” by late-Romantic American composer Amy Beach; the romantic standard "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square"; the traditional Appalachian folk song “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” in rich gospel style; Donny Hathaway’s 1973 single “Someday We'll All Be Free”, a moving expression of the singer’s struggle with a mental disorder that has since grown into a deeper ode to resilience; and Simon & Garfunkel’s “America”, two lovers’ quest for meaning across the United States. Lyyra also offers a nod to one of recent years’ most iconic celebrations of womanhood with Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?”, from the 2023 Barbie movie.

Embodying the spirit of friendship and harmony, Rising offers a sweeping, angelic exploration of upper voice music in the choral landscape. Pre-save Lyyra’s upcoming album Rising now: https://w.lnk.to/lyrisingPR

Tracklist:

1. THE HYMN OF ACXIOM Cynthia Yih Shih, arr. Kerry Marsh
2. CARITAS ABUNDAT Hildegard von Bingen, arr. Nancy Grundahl
3. DUSK IN JUNE Amy Beach
4. MOONRISE Blake Morgan
5. A NIGHTINGALE SANG IN BERKELEY SQUARE Manning Sherwin & Eric Maschwitz, arr. Gene Puerling
6. WILL THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN trad. Appalachian, arr. J. David Moore
7. RISE UP MY LOVE Leslie Savoy Burrs
8. SHE Laura Mvula & Steve Brown, arr. Michael Brisentine
9. WHAT WAS I MADE FOR? Finneas O’Connell & Billie Eilish O’Connell, arr. Anna Crumley
10. DARK OUT OF THE NIGHT Peter Eldridge, arr. Erik Jacobson
11. SOMEDAY WE’LL ALL BE FREE Donny Hathaway, arr. Isaiah Carter
12. AMERICA Paul Simon, arr. Blake Morgan