{{Infobox musical artist | image = BibiVaplanUmbrella.jpg | caption = Bianca Mayer aka Bibi Vaplan, 2012 | alias = Bibi Vaplan | birth_date = 17 May 1979 | birth_place = Scuol, Graubünden, Switzerland | instrument = Guitar, harpsichord, piano | discography = Üna jada intuorn als Alba da la Clozza, 2009<br>Ingio vasch? als Bibi Vaplan, 2011<br>Eu vegn cun tai als Bibi Vaplan, 2011<br>Sdruogliar als Bibi Vaplan, 2012<br>Cul vent als Bibi Vaplan, 2015 | past_member_of = Alba da la Clozza }}

'''Bibi Vaplan''' (stage name of '''Bianca Mayer''') (born 17 May 1979) is a Swiss Romansh musician and singer.

== Life == Mayer was born in 1979 in Scuol, Graubünden, Switzerland, and grew up in the Engadine valley.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bibi Vaplan |url=https://ch.stagend.com/bibi-vaplan |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241202222453/https://ch.stagend.com/bibi-vaplan |archive-date=2024-12-02 |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=stagend.com |language=de-CH |url-status=live }}</ref> She completed her piano studies at the Zurich University of Music (ZHdK) in 2005 with a teaching diploma.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bianca Mayer |url=https://mx3.ch/biancamayer |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Mx3.ch |language=en}}</ref>

During her studies, she composed for films and theater (including for Vitus), and toward the end of her studies, she began teaching herself. In 2009, Mayer won the Canton of Graubünden's Cultural Promotion Prize.<ref name="rtr2009">Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha: [http://www.rtr.ch/home/dossiers/archiv/2009/Premi-grischun-da-cultura/Bianca-Mayer.html Sendung]{{Dead link|url=http://www.rtr.ch/home/dossiers/archiv/2009/Premi-grischun-da-cultura/Bianca-Mayer.html|date=October 2022}} von 2009, aufgerufen am 2. September 2013.</ref>

From 2013 to 2014 she was a radio presenter at Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha (RTR).<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Herold |first=Richard |title=Bibi Vaplans Balladen in «Rätoromanisch-Moll» |url=https://www.srf.ch/kultur/im-fokus/landesteile-vorurteile/bibi-vaplans-balladen-in-raetoromanisch-moll |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611155239/http://www.srf.ch/kultur/im-fokus/landesteile-vorurteile/bibi-vaplans-balladen-in-raetoromanisch-moll |archive-date=2016-06-11 |access-date=2025-04-01 |work=Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen (SRF) |language=de-CH |url-status=live }}</ref>

Her first major CD project was "Alba da la Clozza" (2009), featuring Romansh music. Subsequent albums were "Ingio vasch" (Where Are You Going?), "Eu vegn cun tai" (I'm Coming with You), and "Sdruogliar" (Awakening).

With her duet with Carlos Leal, but also with solo pieces such as "Lascha a Mai", Bibi Vaplan has achieved regular airplay on Radio SRF 3.

In 2016, Bibi Vaplan published her first Romansh-German book.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bibi Vaplan – Rumantsch è… |url=https://rumantsch-e.ch/bibi-vaplan/ |access-date=2025-04-01 |language=de}}</ref>

Bibi Vaplan is on tour with the Popcorn Opera in 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |title=POPCORN OPERA |url=https://www.laudinella.ch/events/bibi-vaplan-popcorn-opera/ |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Laudinella St. Moritz |language=de-CH}}</ref> The tour will stop in St. Moritz, Lucerne, Biel and Bern.<ref>{{Cite web |title=POPCORN OPERA |url=https://www.laudinella.ch/en/events/bibi-vaplan-popcorn-opera/ |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Laudinella St. Moritz |language=en-GB}}</ref>

== Music ==

=== Film and theatre music === Since 2003, Mayer has been writing compositions for plays and films, working on ten projects from 2004 to 2008. She was a composition assistant for the soundtracks of the films ''Vitus'' (Fredi Murer, 2005), ''I Was a Swiss Banker'' (Thomas Imbach, 2007) und ''Happy New Year'' (Christoph Schaub, 2008), among others.<ref name="rtr2009"/>

=== Alba da la Clozza === After her studies, Mayer was active as a singer and guitarist in the rock band ''Alba da la Clozza'' until 2009.<ref name=":0" />

=== Bibi Vaplan === Since 2010, Mayer has developed a quieter and more contemplative musical style. ''Bibi, va plan!'' means ''"Bianca, go slowly!"'' in her Romansh idiom Vallader dialect and is intended to be a programme. As Bibi Vaplan, she writes the lyrics and the music, sings, and plays the piano and harpsichord. The 2012 album ''Sdruogiar'' (''German: Awakening)'' was created in collaboration with the {{Ill|Graubünden Chamber Philharmonic|de|Kammerphilharmonie Graubünden}}.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-06-24 |title=Engadiner Post, Posta Ladina {{!}} Bianca Mayer e sia rolla da «Bibi Vaplan» |url=http://www.engadinerpost.ch/2012/11/bianca-mayer-e-sia-rolla-da-%C2%ABbibi-vaplan%C2%BB.html |access-date=2025-04-01 |archive-date=2016-06-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624225324/http://www.engadinerpost.ch/2012/11/bianca-mayer-e-sia-rolla-da-%C2%ABbibi-vaplan%C2%BB.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Bianca Mayer's lyrics are always about Vallader. The songwriter says about her personal motivation for making music:

{{Quote|"Music helps me escape, understand, feel, or find my feet again when I'm lost in something. If I were completely content, I wouldn't have to make music. I'd rather go for coffee with friends."|title=''Engadiner Post'' from 15 November 2012}}

== Discography ==

===== Albums ===== * ''Üna jada intuorn'' as ''Alba da la Clozza'', 2009. * ''Ingio vasch?'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'', 2011. * ''Eu vegn cun tai'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'', 2011. * ''Sdruogliar'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'', 2012. * ''Cul vent'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'', 2015. * ''Cler Cler'' as ''Bibi Vaplan,'' 2018.

===== EPs and singles =====

* ''60 minuts (Verisun radio)'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2015. * ''Las dumondas (Radio Edit)'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2015. * ''Milli Bels Guottins'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2017. * ''Miss Pompus''/''Swiss Press Song 18'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2018. * ''Crazy Popcorn 1'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2020. * ''Captain Flamingo'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2021. * ''Glüna 3.7'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2021. * ''Madagascar'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2022. * ''Crazy Popcorn 2'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2022. * ''Glüna 3.9'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2023. * ''Culurio'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2024. * ''Edi Plop'' as ''Bibi Vaplan'' in 2025.

== Awards ==

* 2009: Promotional Prize of the Canton of Graubünden.<ref name="rtr2009"/> * 2014: Grant from the Canton of Graubünden. * 2015: Grant from the Canton of Graubünden.

== External links ==

* [http://www.bibivaplan.ch Website from Bibi Vaplan] * [https://open.spotify.com/artist/4aRxoxtJbvvnoD3vkX89wI?si=HfzlOmZuSXaQMreHcZ50Yw Spotify], [https://music.apple.com/ch/artist/bibi-vaplan/399156967 Apple Music], [https://tidal.com/browse/artist/3811877 Tidal], and [https://www.deezer.com/en/artist/1698936 Deezer] from Bibi Vaplan * [https://helveticat.nb.admin.ch/discovery/search?tab=LibraryCatalog&vid=41SNL_51_INST:helveticat&lang=de&offset=0&query=lds50,contains,1121243266 Publications] by and about Bianca Mayer in the Helveticat catalogue of the Swiss National Library

== References == <references /> {{Wikicommons}} {{Authority control}}{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayer, Bianca}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayer, Bianca}} Category:1979 births Category:Living people Category:People from Scuol Category:Romansh people Category:Romansh-language singers Category:Swiss pianists Category:Swiss women songwriters Category:Swiss radio presenters Category:Swiss classical musicians Category:Swiss film score composers Category:Zurich University of the Arts alumni