Valais culture prizes go to Blatter and Les Concerts du Cœur
Actor Roland Vouilloz receives the 2023 Culture Prize of the Canton of Valais. A sponsorship prize goes to trumpeter Simon Blatter and the special prize to "Les Concerts du Cœur".
Simon Blatter was born in Brig in 1995. He began trumpet lessons at the age of nine at the Oberwallis General Music School. After completing his music baccalaureate at the Kollegium Spiritus Sanctus in Brig, he attended the Zurich University of the Arts, and from 2017 he completed his studies at the Basel University of Music. He is principal trumpeter of the Danish Sønderjyllands Symfoniorkester and the Finnish Turku Philharmonic Orchestra. The prize is endowed with 10,000 Swiss francs.
Breaking isolation by sharing emotions in concerts and music workshops is the mission of the association "Les Concerts du Cœur". Founded in 2017 in Sierre by soprano Laure Barras, the association offers musical moments for people who have difficulty accessing concert halls, whether they are elderly, hospitalized, disabled or living in poverty.
The performances organized by the association "Les Concerts du Cœur" are part of a comprehensive cultural mediation. The various elements of the performances are designed for the different contexts and characteristics of the audience. The association also aims to open up new horizons for talented young musicians by introducing them to a social aspect of their profession.
