Launch of the Lucerne major in yodeling
The Department of Music at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts has been offering a major in "Yodeling" since autumn 2018. The start seems to have been a success.
Eight female students are currently attending the new yodeling lessons with department head Nadja Räss - four of them in the major subject, three in the minor subject and one in the preliminary course. The course is aimed at those who already have previous musical knowledge and yodeling experience. The aim of the course is to enable students to teach yodeling at various school levels. This usually requires a Master's degree in music education after the three-year Bachelor's degree.
The course teaches a very good technical command of the yodel as the "main instrument" as well as an in-depth exploration of the various styles and timbres. In addition to voice training and body work, other subjects such as music theory, music history, sight-reading and improvisation are also on the timetable.
In addition to jazz and classical music, the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts has been focusing on folk music in its education and research for years: since 2009, the Bachelor of Arts in Music has offered a specialization in instrumental folk music. Since then, almost 20 students have graduated from this program.
The next concert by the student ensemble "Alpini Vernähmlassig" will be on January 28, 2019 at the "Szenenwechsel" music festival at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in the Jazzkantine. The ensemble will also perform at the Naturstimmen sound festival in Toggenburg (May 2019) and at the Haus der Volksmusik in Altdorf/Uri (June 2019).
