Traditional music
Throughout the 20th century, folk music was encouraged in Switzerland, seen as an ideal vehicle for preserving the Swiss identity. As a result, the Swiss are still faithful to their country's traditions, and it's not uncommon to hear them celebrating folk festivals with yodeling, that onomatopoeic song that changes rapidly from chest voice to head voice; lyoba, the traditional slow cowherd song also known as ranz des vaches; the alphorn, the famous giant trumpet; or the hackbrett, a typical Appenzell instrument, a kind of struck string zither with twenty-five five-string choruses. If you ask the Swiss about a great name in traditional music, they'll probably say Oesch's die Dritten, a family yodeling group from the Bernese Oberland, who enjoyed great success playing the schwyzeroergeli, a small accordion typical of Switzerland. The latter is almost always used in the Ländler, a traditional three-beat dance that is also popular in Germany and Austria, and takes different forms in different regions.
If every celebration is an opportunity to play and hear folk music, the Rencontres de Folklore Internationales , held every August in Fribourg, remain a privileged moment to listen to folk music and see folk dances. Alternatively, Vevey's folk markets offer numerous concerts and traditional dances every Saturday morning in July and August.
Classical music
The second half of the 19th century saw the emergence of the first important figures in Swiss music, notably Friedrich Hegar (1841-1927). Composer, violinist and conductor, he was the first to lead Zurich's Tonhalle Orchestra and became a key influence on the country's musical development. At the same time, Hans Huber (1852-1921) also played a major role, composing some of the first important Swiss symphonies, including Tellsinfonie, based on the story of William Tell, the national hero. From 1900 onwards, more and more central figures appeared, such as Ernest Bloch (1880-1959), a composer close to the neoclassical movement, famous for his direction of American musical institutions (Cleveland or San Francisco). Although unjustly forgotten, Othmar Schoeck (1866-1957) was, in his own time, an important author of often highly inventive operas, and the first Swiss composer to achieve a worldwide reputation. Fritz Brun (1878-1959), a friend of Schoeck's from whom he remained in the shadows, is gradually beginning to be rediscovered. Author of ten remarkable symphonies, the conductor of the Bern Symphony Orchestra left behind a body of work that is firmly rooted in Brahms' legacy.
In the 1920s, two Swiss artists took part in the French "années folles": Arthur Honegger and Heinrich Sutermeister. The first, Honegger (1892-1955), joined the famous "groupe des six" formed by Poulenc, Milhaud, Auric, Durey and Tailleferre - under the aegis of Jean Cocteau - and founded in reaction to "Wagnerism" and musical impressionism. The second, Heinrich Sutermeister (1910-1995), was also a member of the "groupe des six", but was not part of it. Deeply neoclassical and inspired by Carl Orff, his 1953 Requiem, first performed under the direction of Herbert von Karajan, reveals a composer who was more surprising than he appeared.
During the second half of the 20th century, the country was also marked by twelve-tone music, embodied here by local avant-garde figures such as Alfred Keller (1907-1987), a pupil of Schönberg, and Rolf Liebermann (1910-1999), also famous for his cutting-edge stage directions and his direction of the Opéra Garnier. Then there's Frank Martin (1890-1974), a great and little-known composer who was at one time inspired by dodecaphony but never broke with tonality.
More recently, Norbert Moret (1921-1998), a Swiss figure of contemporary music adored by Armin Jordan, Seiji Ozawa and Mstislav Rostropovitch, and Klaus Huber (1924-2017), composer and teacher, have left their mark on the country's musical creation. More iconoclastic, Jacques Guyonnet (1933-2018) is another great figure of Swiss contemporary creation. In the contemporary field, it's impossible not to mention Michel Tabachnik. Formerly titular conductor of the Calouste-Gulbenkian Foundation Orchestra in Lisbon, he is well known in our country, having founded the Orchestre philharmonique de Lorraine in Metz, then created and directed the Ensemble intercontemporain in Paris at the request of Pierre Boulez (to whom he was close).
The Lausanne-born Richard Dubugnon (b. 1968) is one of the most widely performed and successful Swiss composers of his generation. The city's other pride and joy is Ernest Ansermet (1883-1969). An illustrious conductor from Vevey, he founded the Orchestre de la Suisse romande (OSR) in 1918, then was entrusted by Serge de Diaghilev with the musical direction of Ballets Russes shows from 1915 to 1923 - giving it an international dimension. The OSR has since become the country's most important symphony orchestra. It has been conducted by such great names as Marek Janowski (2005-2012), Neeme Järvi (2012-2015) and Armin Jordan (1985-1997), one of Switzerland's leading conductors, along with his son Philippe Jordan (Music Director of the Opéra national de Paris) and Charles Dutoit.
Music lovers will find some very fine venues in Lausanne, including an opera house (with an international reputation), the Palais de Beaulieu (home of the OSR) and the Salle Métropole, where the Orchestre de chambre de Lausanne can be found. A number of interesting events take place in the city, including Septembre musical, a major classical music festival featuring prestigious artists; the Semaine internationale de piano et de musique de chambre, a high-level festival held in the sumptuous Eglise de la Chiésaz; the Bach Festival, a gathering focusing on the study and interpretation of Bach's works; and Musique à Saint-Sulpice, dedicated to chamber music.
Often perceived as a sleepy town around its water fountain, Geneva nonetheless maintains a vibrant musical life. Music lovers need look no further than Place Neuve, on the other side of the Plainpalais plain. This is where you'll find the district dedicated to music. Here you'll find the Grand Théâtre - Geneva's opera house - a magnificent edifice with an air of the Palais Garnier. With its interior all moldings, gilding and faux marble, and its high-flying program - which has become hyper-audacious under the leadership of Aviel Cahn - the venue is a veritable Geneva institution, a must-see in Switzerland for an opera or choreography performance, a recital or even a play. On the same square (Place Neuve), you'll also come across the Conservatoire de Musique, where the annual Geneva International Music Competition is held. A little further on, behind the Maison des arts du Grütli, stands the Victoria Hall, a major concert venue with a neoclassical façade and exceptional acoustics. This is where the famous Archipelcontemporary music festival is held and where you can see the OSR in town. In addition to these venues, Geneva also boasts a number of fine events in the classical style, such as Aubes musicales, dedicated to early-morning music lovers and offering a beautiful concert - free of charge and in the open air - every morning from 6 to 7 a.m., during sunrise, at the Bains des Pâquis. A wonderful way to wake up.
Industrious Zurich also boasts a fine ensemble: the Tonhalle Orchestra. Inaugurated in 1895, it has been conducted by some of the most prestigious names of their time - Brahms, Wagner, Richard Strauss, Hindemith - and has also evolved under the direction of the great Swiss conductor Charles Dutoit. Dutoit is best known for his work at the helm of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal from 1977 to 2002, then as Music Director of the Orchestre national de France from 1991 to 2001. The Zurich Opera House also enjoys an outstanding reputation. Over 300 performances are programmed each year, including 70 in-house creations. The opera house is home to many world-renowned opera singers. Zurich Opera has its own internationally renowned ballet.
Basel is not to be outdone, with a chamber orchestra and, above all, a symphony orchestra(Sinfonieorchester Basel) with a strong contemporary repertoire, formerly conducted by the American Dennis Russell Davies. Also formed in Basel is Hespèrion, an international early music and baroque ensemble founded by the famous violinist Jordi Savall.
These towns and cities have seen some of the country's greatest performers pass through their doors, such as Hugues Cuénod (1902-2010), a Swiss tenor remarkable for his longevity and the breadth of his repertoire, Lisa della Casa (1919-2012), a soprano who shone in the operas of Mozart and Strauss, and Maria Stader (1913-1999), renowned for the luminosity of her timbre. The country was also the birthplace of an immense pianist, Alfred Cortot (1877-1962), a virtuoso interpreter of Chopin, Beethoven, Schumann and Liszt, and a great teacher (Haskil, Perlemuter and Lipatti were among his pupils). No less virtuoso, Switzerland is also home to Edwin Fischer (1886-1960), a fantastic interpreter of Mozart, Schumann and Brahms. Although not a musician, Swiss industrialist Paul Sacher (1906-1999) played an immense role in the country's contemporary classical music. One of the wealthiest people in Switzerland and Europe in his day, this generous patron of the arts commissioned almost three hundred works, becoming a key figure in the country's creative output. In 1976, Mstislav Rostropovitch commissioned a cycle of twelve works for cello from twelve different composers as a tribute to Paul Sacher.
Jazz
Switzerland proves that it's possible to be a small country and still occupy a major place in the jazz landscape. If the Swiss scene is so vigorous today, it's because it's built on a strong personality, forged over time. The genre was introduced to the country between the wars. In the 1930s, a scene developed and Swiss jazz began to shine beyond its borders, epitomized by saxophonist Teddy Stauffer (1909-1991). He paved the way for many Swiss musicians who would go on to achieve international success. These included Sylvie Courvoisier, a pianist exiled in the USA who recorded with such luminaries as John Zorn and Yusef Lateef, and George Gruntz (1932-2013), also a pianist and undoubtedly one of the most influential jazz musicians of his time. He collaborated with such giants of the genre as Louis Armstrong, Dexter Gordon and Don Cherry, and was artistic director of Berlin's JazzFest for over twenty years. Other international figures in improvised music include pianist Irène Schweizer and percussionist Pierre Favre, both authors of Dantesque works in which contemporary music is never far away. And let's not forget Daniel Humair, one of the most important drummers to have distinguished himself in Europe over the last fifty years, thanks to his powerful, complex playing. Humair has probably played with every jazz great of his time, with the exception of Miles Davis. Today, it's saxophonist Christoph Erb and his dark, abstract jazz, and trombonist Samuel Blaser who are taking Swiss jazz beyond its borders.
Festivals have also played a major role in the development of Swiss jazz. The Montreux Jazz Festival comes to mind first and foremost: since 1967, it has become a legendary gathering of the crème de la crème of jazz - and of music as a whole. A Swiss monument, a statue of Claude Nobs, its founder, has been erected in the grounds of the Montreux Palace. A few kilometers further along the lake, the Cully Jazz Festival is held every year. Founded in 1983, the event continues to focus on contemporary jazz, with top-notch line-ups in a splendid setting. Other highlights include the Jazzonze+Festival, which promotes improvised music and contemporary jazz, the AMR Jazz Festival, an excellent gathering of international artists in Geneva, and Zurich's JazznoJazz, which offers some twenty concerts a year. As for clubs, the Chorus is perhaps the best in Lausanne, bringing together great musicians and unknown groups, the Montreux Jazz Café in Geneva Airport and Montreux (of course) summon up the spirit of the festival, and the Bird's Eye Jazz Club in Basel invites the biggest names on the international jazz scene.
The dance
Contemporary dance is another Swiss passion. The country is home to numerous companies, the most famous of which is of course the Béjart Ballet Lausanne. Although born in Marseille, the dancer and choreographer Maurice Béjart (1927-2007) is for all Swiss a true personality of the country. Moving to Lausanne at the end of his Brussels experience, Béjart disbanded the Ballet du XXe siècle to create the Béjart Ballet Lausanne. Five years later, he also founded the École-atelier Rudra-Béjart, which quickly became one of the world's most prestigious dance schools.
Switzerland's other great dancer and choreographer is Philippe Saire. A major figure in Switzerland, the artist created his own company in 1986, through which he participated (and still participates) in the development of contemporary dance in the country. Author of some thirty shows to date, he also founded the Théâtre Sévelin 36 in 1995, on the Docks, which has become a major venue in the city. Swiss choreographers also include Heinz Spoerli, widely regarded as one of the greatest European choreographers of his time, Thomas Hauert, who explores the tension between order and disorder, Caroline Denervaud, inspired by Pina Bausch and Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, as well as Maria Ribot, interested in questions of the body, and Alexandra Bachzetsis, working on those of gender.
Every year since 1973, Lausanne has hosted the Prix Bausch, a prestigious international competition for young dancers. Considered one of the best in the world, the prize has contributed massively to Lausanne's association with the world of dance. Geneva, too, is well endowed with classical institutions such as the Ballet du Grand Théâtre which, for several decades now, under the impetus of its director Philippe Cohen, has been synonymous with choreographic daring (and the critics are full of praise). Here, you can see the work of great Genevan choreographers such as Gilles Jobin, an illustrious name in Swiss dance, or Ioannis Mandafounis, who is very much in the limelight. Otherwise, since 1986, Geneva's benchmark for the promotion of contemporary dance has undoubtedly been the Association pour la danse contemporaine (ADC), to be seen between the Salle des Eaux-Vives and the Pavillon de danse, its future home. Basel's Kaserne is one of Switzerland's largest centers for theater, dance and performance. Over the years, it has become a key partner for major events on the local, national and international scene.
