Stefan Escher comes from a family of musicians and has been very familiar with the music scene as an artist agent and concert organizer for 15 years. From 2015-2019 he managed the Meisterinterpreten concert series at the Tonhalle Zurich and since 2020 he has been responsible for international instrumentalists and conductors as an artist agent at IMG Artists. He also has experience in banking and holds a Master's degree in Arts Management. The Board of Trustees is delighted to entrust Stefan Escher with the management of the Foundation and wishes him every success and pleasure in his new role.

Stefan Escher succeeds Valerie Probst. She will leave the SJMW as Managing Director at the end of February 2025 to pursue new challenges. In her 18 years as Managing Director, Valérie Probst has played a key role in shaping the development of the SJMW with great commitment. Under her leadership, funding projects were implemented that opened up valuable opportunities for the award winners and enabled them to gain lasting experience. Valérie Probst has always been a reliable and inspiring companion for the next generation of musicians.

The Board of Trustees very much regrets her departure and would like to thank Valérie Probst for her many years of extremely valuable work on behalf of young musicians in Switzerland and for her constructive and successful collaboration, and wishes her all the best for the future and every success in her new endeavors.

The Board of Trustees is now chaired by Andreas Wegelin, CEO of the SUISA Cooperative Society of Music Authors and Publishers in Zurich.

It was already clear before the actual event that no Swiss composer would win the first prize of 60,000 francs in one of the world's most lucrative composition competitions. The twelve composers whose works were selected and presented to the public in three concerts in the Paul Sacher Hall of Don Bosco Basel came from Germany, Spain, Italy, Mexico, Slovakia, Greece and the People's Republic of China. The jury, which had the task of selecting what they considered to be the twelve best works from the huge number of entries, consisted of Michael Jarrell, Augusta Read Thomas, Liza Lim, Andrea Lorenzo Scartazzini and Florian Besthorn, the director of the Paul Sacher Foundation. Christoph Müllers Artistic Management GmbH and his team organize the BCC.

 After the three competition concerts, the jury selected five works for the final concert, which were played again and from which the prize-winning works were chosen. In view of the fact that there are stars among contemporary female composers such as Unsuk Chin, Olga Neuwirth, Kaija Saariaho and Anna Thorvaldsdottir, whose works are frequently performed, it was astonishing that only one work by a woman was selected and performed. The reason given for the paltry proportion of women was the small number of works submitted by female composers.

Night, colors, birds

In the end, however, it was the extremely shy 25-year-old Chinese composer Qianchen Lu, currently still a student of Shen-Ying Qian in Shanghai, who not only won the inaugural Audience Award of 5,000 Swiss francs, but also the first prize in the Basel Composition Competition. Her Nine Odes to The Night based on poems by T. S. Eliot are intended, according to the composer, to depict the vagueness and fluidity of nocturnal impressions and to capture the blurring and transformation of the night before finally disappearing into uncertainty. The densely woven band of sound, perhaps a little too long, fascinates with its distinctive timbres and poetic moods.

Even more imaginatively orchestrated was The Gaze of Mnemosyne. Four Afterimages for Orchestra by her Chinese compatriot Erqing Wang, who studies with Annesley Black at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz. Each orchestral section contributes to an extraordinarily colorful whole in this work, which won 2nd prize and was a great pleasure to listen to. The piece is a real homage to the music of Debussy and Ravel, which is also present, perhaps over-present, through quotations.

Less convincing Bird in Space by the Spaniard Ramón Humet (3rd prize). Like Messiaen, the composer is fascinated by birdsong, in this piece by the South American turpial. Humet imagines that a small bird begins to sing in a huge cathedral. An interesting idea, but one that doesn't carry the piece and makes it seem drawn out.

Among the non-award-winning works, there were some that were original and appealing or at least interesting, such as the pointillist music painting punctum contra punctum by Jona Kümper, the effective Macabre Carnival by Aurés Moussong or the powerful eruption of sound Flowered Fluidity by Carlos Satué, which is constructed according to complicated mathematical principles.

Basel's musical life is strong in performance and communication

The Basel Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Tito Ceccherini, the Basel Sinfonietta under Pablo Rus Broseta and the Basel Symphony Orchestra under Roland Kluttig interpreted the consistently difficult works with commitment and at a high technical level. The fact that there are three orchestras in a city the size of Basel that can play the most demanding contemporary compositions is not a matter of course. All the nominated works were recorded on video and later published on the BCC's YouTube channel.

The concept of the BCC also includes cooperation with the music academy and grammar schools in the region. Students from the college work on pieces by jury members in workshops and present them in pre-concerts. This year, very well played pieces by Liza Lim and Augusta Read Thomas could be heard throughout. Axis Mundi for solo bassoon (2012/13) by Liza Lim with sounds of this instrument that had hardly been heard before was given a benchmark performance by Timm Kornelius. During the week of the competition, various composers each visit a school class that has already specifically studied their work and new music in general.

According to a statement from the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK) The discography of the award-winning pianist includes Ragna Schirmer "currently 18 CDs, 2 DVDs and 2 vinyl recordings with an extensive repertoire ranging from baroque music to contemporary works. Ragna Schirmer performs worldwide with her own historical keyboard instruments or on modern concert grand pianos. Unusual projects and theater productions staged for her also reveal the pianist's dramaturgical skill with which she embeds her programs in historical contexts." As a teacher, she focuses on "body and self-awareness, performance training and overcoming stage fright as well as developing interpretations with attention to detail. Promoting the individuality of the students is a particular concern of hers."

"I am delighted to return to my 'alma mater' as a lecturer and to pass on my experience to the next generations," says Immanuel Richter to his new position at the ZHdK. He completed his studies (teaching, orchestral and concert diploma) at the former Zurich Conservatory with Claude Rippas. According to the ZHdK press release, the award-winning musician has worked as a solo trumpeter in various Swiss orchestras and in the orchestra of La Scala in Milan with renowned conductors. "As a sought-after soloist and chamber musician, he can regularly be heard on European stages. He has taught trumpet at the Lucerne School of Music for many years."

The Netzwerk Junge Ohren writes that the "survey is intended to provide information about professional contexts and fields of activity, it examines the requirements and framework conditions of music education and explores the effects of the professional field on personal decisions and social potential."

The data is collected anonymously online.

Further information and link to the questionnaire

The Lucerne School of Music has announced that Francesca Verunelli will join the Department of New Music, Composition and Theory from the spring semester of 2025. The internationally renowned composer will enrich the Lucerne School of Music with her wide-ranging experience.

Andri Hardmeier will take over as Director of the Institute for Classical and Sacred Music on March 1, 2025. In addition to many other professional positions, he was Head of the Music Department at Pro Helvetia for many years and thus brings with him "outstanding knowledge of the musical profession and the funding landscape".

Link to the HSLU report Andri Hardmeier

Link to the HSLU report Francesca Verunelli

Table of contents

Focus

I invite the listener into my head
Interview with Francesco Biamonte about music and language

In search of words for what is felt
"The Listeners" talk about the music after concerts

Pop, black on white
For Hanspeter Künzler, it is a certain "Je ne sais quoi" that motivates him to report

The discotheque (at Zwei) - a private listening club for everyone
Carte blanche from Moritz Weber

Chatting about ... podcasts
Susanne Stähr and Ulrike Thiele exchange ideas

(italics = summary in German of the original French article)

Critiques

New releases Sound carrier, Websites, Sheet music

Echo

With Bruckner's Third to Rome
The newly founded Swiss National Orchestra made a guest appearance at the Vatican on its first trip abroad

The future orchestra with a past
The Junge Deutsche Philharmonie is regarded as a pioneer of self-governing orchestras. In Basel, it performed a work by Daniel Schnyder for the first time.

Stored and unleashed time at the Dampfzentrale Bern
The Ensemble Proton and the Nouvel Ensemble Contemporain venture a sonic tightrope walk with Enno Poppe's cycle "Speicher 1 - 6"

Penser d'abord à ce qui nous fait vibrer
The HEM de Genève et Neuchâtel celebrates its quinze years. Béatrice Zawodnik makes the point with us and imagines the future.

A Valaisan in America
Ludwig Bonvin, an almost forgotten Swiss composer and musicologist

Base

Articles and news from the music associations

Swiss Federal Orchestra Association (EOV) / Société Fédérale des Orchestres (SFO)

Konferenz Musikhochschulen Schweiz (KMHS) / Conférence des Hautes Ecoles de Musique Suisse (CHEMS)

Kalaidos University of Music / Kalaidos Haute École de Musique

Swiss Music Council (SMR) / Conseil Suisse de la Musique (CSM)

CHorama

Swiss Society for Music Medicine (SMM) / Association suisse de Médecine de la Musique (SMM)

Swiss Musicological Society (SMG) / Société Suisse de Musicologie (SSM)

Swiss Musicians' Association (SMV) / Union Suisse des Artistes Musiciens (USDAM)

Schweizerischer Musikpädagogischer Verband (SMPV) / Société Suisse de Pédagogie Musicale (SSPM)

SONART - Musicians Switzerland

Swiss Youth Music Competition Foundation (SJMW)

Arosa Culture

SUISA - Cooperative Society of Authors and Publishers of Music

Swiss Association of Music Schools (VMS) / Association Suisse des Écoles de Musique (ASEM)

 

Dixit Sixtus
Puzzle by Chris Walton

________________________________________

Order issue for CHF 10.- (+ CHF 2.- shipping costs)

 

 

The Junge Deutsche Philharmonie (JDPh), nicknamed "the orchestra of the future", celebrated its 50th anniversary last year. A small group from the German National Youth Orchestra founded their own formation in 1974, as the young people did not want to join a professional orchestra. At the time, the established classical music business had a bad reputation among many students. The new orchestra was to be grassroots democratic and self-governing and clearly set itself apart from the encrusted concert life. Lothar Zagrosek, principal conductor and advisor to the JDPh from 1995 to 2014, called this a "late weather glow of the 1968 movement". Today it is "a dream destination for orchestral musicians and conductors alike to be invited there". (JDPh Magazine Clock generator 55, S. 8)

Despite all the prophecies of doom, the co-determination model has established itself as an alternative form of organization in the classical concert business. Similarly functioning formations such as the Ensemble Modern, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, the Ensemble Resonanz, the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra and the Basel Sinfonietta have been highly successful for years. The members of the JDPh work in various committees on the future of the orchestra, the programs and the selection of conductors and soloists. The proposals are discussed and voted on at the general meeting.

 

Located between study and work

Today, the JDPh is highly sought after by students at German-speaking music academies as a training orchestra, as it performs at the highest artistic level and with top-class conductors and soloists. Many professional orchestras value the training they receive at the JDPh and are happy to make use of its graduates. Among the many successful former members are names such as Thomas Hengelbrock, Jun Märkl, Stefan Dohr and Sabine Meyer. The current 280 members aged between 18 and 28 from 35 different universities are subject to a strict selection process: 10 to 15 percent of the 500 applicants who come to audition each year are accepted, initially on a provisional basis. On average, they stay for 4 years.

There are currently 5 members from Swiss universities. The program focuses on the symphonic literature of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. This is performed during the spring and fall tours. At New Year, the focus is usually on a lively program with several shorter works. Another focus is contemporary music. The "Freispiel", a biennial experimental festival, took place for the last time last summer in Frankfurt with 13 concerts under the title "Shifting Futures".

 

Today it's all about jobs

What has remained of the idealistic goals of that time? Jürgen Normann, one of the founding members, was principal double bass of the NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra in Hanover for more than four decades. "Did we really achieve anything?" he asks himself looking back. Opinions are divided, he says, because "some of the bad traditions from back then still exist". (ibid. p. 9) But the world keeps turning and professional realities are changing. Jonathan Nott, First Conductor since 2014, classifies the members' aspirations: "While they still value self-management and grassroots democratic organization, they also want jobs, they want into the business, perhaps in opposition to what some of the founders had fought for." (ibid. p. 22)

The high turnover and the involvement of everyone in the responsibility remains one of the great strengths of the JDPh. Media manager Johanna Kehl says: "The JDPh reinvents itself every time. The self-determination of our members, who actively take on and are responsible for the design of the programs and concert formats, creates a special energy and the freedom to develop and try out innovative ideas."

This special energy could be felt immediately at the "Celebrations" concert on January 9. "The pioneer of self-managed orchestras" created enthusiasm and a good atmosphere among the audience. Delyana Lazarova conducted with wit, swing and precision. The program with Copland, Gershwin, Bolcom, Bernstein and Daniel Schnyder was characterized by a pluralism of styles between classical, new music and jazz. Despite the large instrumentation, the string sound always remained lean and vivid. Brass, woodwind and percussion featured prominently throughout, for example in William Bolcom's Concerto Grosso with the stunning saxophone quartet Kebyart. In Daniel Schnyder's complex Concerto for Orchestra (premiere, commissioned by the JDPh), instruments that are normally neglected such as tuba, bass trombone and contrabassoon are given important motivic solos.

Over the last 300 years, the string quartet has established itself as the "premier class" of string instruments, writes the Yehudi Menuhin Forum in its press release of January 12. Today, it is a versatile musical genre in various musical styles for professional musicians and amateurs alike. This is why the Forum wants to place an emphasis on this area.

The "Streichquartett Bern" begins with the Vogler Quartet Leipzig on January 17 and 18 at the Yehudi Menuhin Forum in Bern. There will also be further offers for participants and listeners.

Further information: menuhinforum.ch

Depending on the class, different subjects are affected by the cuts. According to a message from the Online portal Sardona24.ch From next school year, there will only be one music lesson in the sixth primary school class. Previously there were two.

In other classes, there are fewer lessons in French, English or Nature, Man and Society. In the upper school, there are no lessons in the core subjects and electives.

These cuts could reduce the heavy workload on classroom teachers. The decision to reduce their workload by one lesson was made in summer 2024.

The St. Gallen Cantonal Teachers' Association criticizes this decision in its communication of January 8. The decision was made purely for financial policy reasons without prior consultation with school stakeholders. It is a delicate savings decision with which the St. Gallen government is jeopardizing the quality of education in the canton.

The Swiss Music Council is working with the member associations involved to develop a strategy to ensure that the "high-quality music lessons" required by the Swiss constitution (BV67a, para. 2) and enshrined in the curriculum actually take place in schools and are not cut for reasons of cost-cutting or other reasons. A steering group will be constituted on January 22 to this end.

 

What exactly is meant by memory? A hard disk? An old farm building? Or perhaps the human brain? Questions of this kind accompanied us on this winter evening in the Kesselhaus of the Dampfzentrale, where the next special feature was immediately waiting - 22 instruments were ready on stage, including a harp and two large percussion instruments. We waited even more eagerly for the first sounds and were surprised once again by a solo viola, which searched for fixed pitches for almost minutes with endless glissandi.

In this work for large chamber orchestra, composed between 2008 and 2013, each of the six Memory an independent soundscape that is characterized by its specific atmosphere and musical language. In it, Poppe develops a world of contrasts: from gentle, lyrical passages reminiscent of quiet meditation to powerful and rhythmic outbursts that shake up the audience. The music is not always easy to understand, and it often takes the listener down new emotional paths. At the concert, you could suddenly feel how the sounds changed the mood in the hall; sometimes to concentrated attention, often to exuberant cheerfulness.

How time flies

A central aspect in Memory 1-6 is the play with space and time. Poppe stretches and compresses the musical flow of time. This creates a feeling of constant movement and change that inevitably captivates the listener. The individual Memory can be understood as different spaces, each with its own perspective on the passing of time. Sometimes it seems to stand still while the sounds expand endlessly, then again the action accelerates into a brilliant ride into the unknown. The combination of traditional orchestral instruments with occasional electronic elements creates a unique soundscape that is both familiar and strange at the same time. Poppe manages to build a bridge to different musical epochs and at the same time develop a completely new musical language.

His cycle is a challenging piece that requires a high degree of technical skill and interpretative precision. In addition to virtuosity, it also requires the musicians to have a keen understanding of the complex structures and subtleties of the composition. The two ensembles fully met these requirements on this evening. Under the direction of the German conductor Gregor A. Mayrhofer, who acted with impressive authority and clarity, the performers succeeded in giving a performance that emphasized both the structural sophistication and the tonal diversity of the work. Together, they ensured that the dense, sometimes brittle textures were never overwhelming, but always remained precise and transparent.

How order and chaos are connected

Memory 1-6 developed into a dialog between the musicians, the audience and, to a certain extent, the composer over the course of around 70 minutes. With this cycle, Poppe invites the audience to listen actively and to engage fully with the music. It is important to him not to send any interpretative hints in advance, no conceptual clues should predetermine the experience. The results are as surprising as they are individual. Often various synthesizers seem to howl or wail at the same time, sometimes the strings sound like scattered data carriers in the last moments before their disintegration; and again and again the sounds seem like a subtle representation of the interaction of order and chaos.

The Dampfzentrale boiler house, clad entirely in black, once again proved to be a fitting venue. The acoustics were suitably dry, the lighting perhaps a little too contrasting at times. Nonetheless, the venue also seemed to easily add this performance to its now rich storehouse of contemporary art.

 

The performances took place on December 17 and 20, 2024 in Bern and La Chaux-de-Fonds respectively. Concert excerpts will be published on YouTube at a later date.

Music books received July-December 2024

• Anton Voigt: Alfred Cortot. Keyboard poet - teacher - cultural actor, Solo Portraits and Profiles, 285 p., € 28.00, Edition Text+Kritik, Munich 2024, ISBN 978-3-96707-708-7
• Köchel-Verzeichnis, Thematisches Verzeichnis der musikalischen Werke von Wolfgang Amadé Mozart, New edition 2024, edited by Neal Zaslaw, presented by Ulrich Leisinger with the assistance of Miriam Pfadt and Ioana Geanta, BV 300, CXXV + 1263 p., € 499.00, Breitkopf & Härtel, Wiesbaden 2024
  >>> Review by Dominik Sackmann
• Corinne Holtz: World in the work. Klaus Huber (1924-2017), Biography, 309 p., Fr. 54.00, Schwabe, Basel 2024, ISBN 978-3-7965-5148-2
• Hanspeter Spörri: Steff Signer. The musical biography, A piece of Swiss rock, pop and highmatt history, 400 p., Appenzeller Verlag, Schwellbrunn 2024, ISBN 978-3-85882-888-0
  >>> Review by Hanspeter Künzler
• Ernst Kurth / Guido Adler: Correspondence 1908-1936edited by Luitgard Schader, 205 p., € 22.80, Königshausen & Neumann, Würzburg 2024, ISBN 978-3-8260-7969-6
• Barbara Busch and Barbara Metzger: 44 warm-ups for instrumental lessons(=üben & musizieren Praxis), 80 p., € 24.50, Schott, Mainz 2024, ISBN 978-3-7957-3172-4
• Joachim Kühn and Michael Brüning: The bold factor. Free + independent: no limits in jazz, 320 p., € 24.95, Alfred Music, Cologne 2024, ISBN 978-3-947998-59-3
• Correspondence Arnold Schönberg - Heinrich Jalowetzed. by Simon Obert, (=Publications of the Paul Sacher Foundation, Volume 13; Briefwechsel der Wiener Schule, Volume 7), 408 p., Schott, Mainz 2024, ISBN 978-3-7957-3341-4
• Howard Griffiths: Barboza and the sounding tree - a musical journey through Switzerland, music by Fabian Künzli, played by the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg; narrator Fernando Tiberini illustrations by Andrea Peter, 52 p., audio download, Fr. 29.80, GH 11817, Hug Musikverlage, Zurich 2024, ISBN 978-3-03807-145-7
• Building authority in music, ed. by Bernd Brabec, Marc-Antoine Camp, Dorit Klebe, 280 p., Fr. 38.00, Chronos, Zurich 2024, ISBN 978-3-0340-1734-3
• Marko Simsa: Waltz step and polkahit. Johann Strauss for children, picture book with music (CD or download), illustrations by Silke Brix, 32 p., € 24.00, Jumbo, Hamburg, ISBN 978-3-8337-4800-4
• Peter Benary. Composer, musicologist, publicist and lecturer, edited by Niccolò Raselli and Hans Niklas Kuhn, ca. 229 pages, ca. Fr. 46.00, Schwabe, Basel 2024, ISBN 978-3-7965-5109-3
  >> Review by Torsten Möller
• Bernhard Suter: Guiding creative processes in music lessons. A design-based research study on the reflection-based competence development of primary school teachers entering the profession, 334 p., Potsdamer Schriftenreihe zur Musikpädagogik, vol. 10, Universitätsverlag Potsdam, 2024, ISBN 978-3-86956-567-5, open access
• Luigi Nono. On the question of the turning point, Music Concepts No. 206, edited by Ulrich Tadday, 121 pages, € 28.00, Edition Text+Kritik, Munich 2024, ISBN 978-3-96707-966-1
• Friedrich Chrysander. Musicologist of the first hour, edited by Ivana Rentsch, Hamburg Yearbook of Musicology Volume 4, 266 p., € 39.90, Waxmann, Münster 2024, ISBN 978-3-8309-4884-1
• Wolfgang W. Müller: Music of the angels. A cultural history, 264 p., ca. Fr. 28.00, Schwabe, Basel 2024, ISBN 978-3-7965-5128-4
• Joseph Joachim. Identities / Identities(= Studien und Materialien zur Musikwissenschaft, vol. 128), ed. by Katharina Uhde and Michael Uhde, 477 p., € 58.00, Georg Olms, Baden-Baden, ISBN 978-3-487-16425-0
• Michel Roth: At stake. Eine spielheoretische Untersuchung indeterminierter Musik, 524 p., Wolke, Hofheim 2024, ISBN 978-3-95593-152-0, open access
• Julius Otto Grimm - a composer and conductor of the Brahms circleedited by Anna Maria Plischka and Peter Schmitz, 704 p., € 69.90, Waxmann, Münster 2024, ISBN 978-3-8309-4759-2
• Tania Salvador, aka La Rata: Give it to me! Essay illustrated in graphic novel style, counter-history of popular music that puts female artists at the center, translation Petra Sparrer, 256 p., € 36.00, Laurence-King-Verlag, Berlin 2024, ISBN 978-3-96244-435-8
• Daniel Martin Feige: Philosophy of music. Musikästhetik im Ausgang von Adorno, 216 p., € 24.00, Edition Text+Kritik, Munich 2024, ISBN 978-3-689-30028-9
  >>> Review by Lukas Nussbaumer
• Music, Performance, Architecture. Sacred Spaces as Sound Spaces in the Early Modern Perioded. by Tobias C. Weissmann and Klaus Pietschmann, 312 p., € 69.00, Georg Olms, Baden-Baden 2024, ISBN 978-3-487-16724-4
• Meinolf Brüser: "It's all a breeze", Bach and the secret of the "Art of Fugue", 177 p., € 39.99, Bärenreiter/J.B Metzler, Kassel/Stuttgart 2024, ISBN 978-3-7618-2654-6
• Radio Cologne Sound. The WDR studio for electronic musicedited by Harry Vogt and Martina Seeber, 287 p., German/English, ill., with 5 CDs, € 39.00, Wolke, Hofheim 2024, ISBN 978-3-95593-259-6
  >>> Review by Thomas Meyer
• Luiz Alves da Silva: Between Zurich and Rio de Janeiro, Hausmusik in der ersten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts, translated from the Portuguese by Daniel Schnurrenberger,(=Schweizer Beiträge zur Musikforschung, Vol. 28), 326 p., € 49.95, Bärenreiter, Kassel 2024, ISBN 978-3-7618-2616-4
• A new start together. Prospects for music clubs after the pandemic! edited by Verena Bons, Johanna Borchert, Thade Buchborn, Wolfgang Lessing, (Schriften der Hochschule für Musik Freiburg), 160 p., € 44.00, Georg Olms, Baden-Baden, ISBN 978-3-487-17048-0
• Nicole Johänntgen and Raffaella Ligi: Schmusebär's sonorous journey with the flying chair, 28 S., nicolejohaenntgen.com/

 

Music books received January-June 2024

• Jannis Mallouchos: Adolf Reichel (1816-1896). Political, cultural-historical, music-theoretical and compositional aspects of a musician's life, (=Wiener Veröffentlichungen zur Musikwissenschaft, Vol. 56), 650 p., Hollitzer, Vienna 2023, ISBN 978-3-99094-084-6
  >>> Review by Max Sommerhalder
• Studies in the Arts II, Arts, Design and Science in Exchange, ed. by Thomas Gartmann, Cristina Urchueguia, Hannah Ambühl-Baur, 313 p., Transcript, Bielefeld 2024, ISBN 978-3-8376-6954-1, Open Access: transcript-verlag.de/media/pdf
• Revue musicale de Suisse romande, Numéro spécial 75 ans, La musique à Genève au XV^e siècle, Décembre 2023, avec CD: La contenance angloise. La chapelle des Ducs de Savoie, dir. Vincent Arlettaz, Revue musicale de Suisse romande RMSR 20232
• Robert Craft et Igor Stravvinsy: Conversations avec Igor Stravinsky, 192 p., € 16.00, Editions Allia, Paris 2024, ISBN 979-10-304-1836-1
• Mathias Gredig: Grand hotels, risotto and bombs, History of Futurist Noise Art, Fröhliche Wissenschaft 232, 173 p., € 15.00, Matthes & Seitz, Berlin 2024, ISBN 978-3-7518-3012-6
  >>> Review by Thomas Meyer
• Rien de Reede: The School of Blavet, Flutist in Paris in the Second Half of the Eighteenth Century, 144 p., Linos Edition, Amsterdam 2022, ISBN 978-90-9036371-4
• Walter Fähndrich: Why do we improvise? 80 p., € 18.00, Wolke, Hofheim 2024, ISBN 978-3-95593-270-1
• Text as Source and Material in Contemporary Music Theatre, ed. by Christa Brüstle, (=Studien zur Wertungsforschung 65), 304 p., € 33.50, Universal Edition, Vienna 2023, ISBN 978-37024-7793-6
• Peter Petersen: Arnold Schönberg's String Quartet op. 7, Three ways to understand the work, 211 p., numerous musical examples, Georg Olms, Baden-Baden 2024 ISBN 978-3-487-16700-8
• Creative misunderstandings or universal musical principles? Hugo Riemann and the international transfer of knowledge, ed. by Stefan Keym in conjunction with Christoph Hust, (Studien und Materialien zur Musikwissenschaft, vol. 131), 377 p., hardcover, € 99.00, Georg Olms, Baden-Baden 2024, ISBN 978-3-487-16680-3
• Salon orchestra in the Alpsed. by Mathias Gredig, Matthias Schmidt, Cordula Seger, 232 p., Fr. 38.00, Chronos, Zurich 2024, ISBN 978-3-0340-1733-6
  >>> Review by Lukas Nussbaumer
• Stefan Braese: Cool. Jazz as a counterculture in post-war western Germany. 442 p., € 42.00, Edition Text + Kritik, Munich 2024, ISBN 978-3-96707-915-9
• Lothar Freiburg: Wonders of music. The music of Europe over 2000 years, 354 p., € 44.80, Wissner, Augsburg 2024, ISBN 978-3-95786-3287-7
• Ingo Bredenbach: Johann Sebastian Bach's piano lessons. Bach as learner and teacher, 519 p., € 59.00, Bärenreiter, Kassel 2024, ISBN 978- 3-7618- 2617-1
• Handbook of Opera. 16th updated and expanded edition, edited by Rudolf Kloiber, Wulf Konold and Robert Maschka 1021 p., € 49.99, Bärenreiter/J.B. Metzler, Kassel/Heidelberg 2024, ISBN 978-3-7618-2644-7
• Wolfgang Jansen: Musical - the musical theater of the present, (= Gesammelte Schriften zum Populären Musiktheater, Vol. 3), 286 p., € 39.90, Waxmann, Münster 2024, ISBN 978-3-8309-4757-8
• Jutta Toelle: Mission through music, Stimmen zu Musik und Klängen in der europäischen Missionierung Hispanoamerikas, Musik und Migration, Vol. 4, 172 pages, € 34.90, Waxmann, Münster 204, ISBN 978-3-8309-4728-8
• Composers in the Stalinist gulag, edited by Inna Klause, Andreas Waczkat, Stefan Weiss, 468 p., € 89.00, Georg Olms, Baden-Baden 2024, ISBN 978-3-487-16694-0
• Lied und populäre Kultur / Song and Popular Culture, Weltmusik und ihre Kritik: Postkoloniale Zugänge zu globaler Musik, (= Jahrbuch des Zentrums für Populäre Kultur und Musik, 68. Jahrgang - 2023), ed. by Maria Fuchs, Johannes Müske, Knut Holtsträter, 258 p., € 39.90, Waxmann, Münster 2024, ISBN 978-3-8309-4889-6
• Music in the monotheistic religions, Reflections on the aesthetic function of sacred music, ed. by Wolfgang Müller, Franc Wagner (=TeNOR. Text und Normativität 11), 240 p., Fr. 48.00, Schwabe, Basel 2024, ISBN 978-3-7965-5045-4

 

Music books received July-December 2023

• Sigfried Schibli: The Organ Experience. The most beautiful instruments in and around Basel, 160 p., Fr. 44.80, Reinhardt, Basel 2023, ISBN 978-3-7245-2660-5
• Early music today, History and Perspectives of Historical Performance Practice, edited by Richard Lorber, 414 p., € 39.99, Bärenreiter/Metzler, Kassel/Stuttgart 2023, ISBN 978-3-7618-2520-4
• Le plus beau pays du monde ? Othmar Schoeck's environment in Central Switzerland, book accompanying the Othmar Schoeck Festival 202, edited by Alvaro Schoeck and Chris Walton, 180 p., Fr. 20.00, Müsigricht, Steinen 2023, ISBN 978-3-9525658-2-7
  >>> Review by Daniel Willi
• Corina Nastoll: Practicing is a must! Efficient and enjoyable practicing, (= übern & musizieren spezial), 44 p., € 18.50, Schott, Mainz, ISBN 978-3-7957-3094-9
  >>> Review by Torsten Möller
• "You are art to me". The correspondence between Alma Mahler and Walter Gropius from 1910 to 1914edited by Annemarie Jaeggi and Jörg Rothkamm, 784 p., € 49.00, Residenz, Vienna 2023, ISBN 9783701735945
• Ethel Smyth: Drumbeats from paradise. Memories, translated from the English by Heddi Feilhauer, 256 p., € 24.00, ebersbach & simon, Cologne 2023, ISBN 978-3-86915-286-8
• Rainer Schmusch: Sense of hearing and "sound". Ästhetische Anthropologie der Musik, nach Herder und Händel, (= Myosotis Bd. 8), 452 p., € 62.00, Universitätsverlag Winter, Heidelberg 2023, ISBN 978-3-8253-4867-0
• Music and migration. Ein Theorie- und Methodenhandbuch, ed. by Wolfgang Gratzer, Nils Grosch, Ulrike Präger, Susanne Scheiblhofer, (= Musik und Migration, Vol. 3), 746 p., br., € 69.90, Waxmann, Münster 2023, ISBN 978-3-8309-4630-4, Open Access, doi.org/10.31244/9783830996309
  >>> Review by Torsten Möller
• Silke Kruse-Weber: Reflect! An observation and reflection tool for instrumental and vocal teachers, (= Grazer Schriften zur Instrumental- und Gesangspädagogik, Vol. 4), 88 pages, br., with card game, €34.90, Waxmann, Münster 2023, ISBN 978-3-8309-4658-8
• Silja Reidemeister: Between contemporary design and historical interest - the composer Rudolf Moser. A search for clues in original documents, 227 p., Fr. 38.00, Schwabe, Basel 2023, ISBN 978-3-7965-4849-9
• Markus Cslovjecsek: School music for all? On the legitimization of music as a subject, 313 p., € 48.00, Transcript, Bielefeld 2023, ISBN 978-3-8376-6884-1, Open Access: transcript-verlag.de/shopMedia/openaccess/pdf/oa9783839468845.pdf
• Eike Fess: Arnold Schönberg and the composition with twelve notes, 224 p., € 27.00, Edition Text+Kritik, Munich 2023, ISBN 978-3-96707-862-6
• Milena Amann-Rauter: "Avec mon arme, la musique". Political engagement of exiled musicians in the context of the Front Populaire, 504 p., € 48.00, Edition Text + Kritik, Munich 2023, ISBN 978-3-96707-887-9
• Julia Wilke: Music and movement in individual pedagogical work. Video-based analyses of music- and movement-related coordination processes, 2023, (= Internationale Hochschulschriften, Vol. 707), 228 p. € 39.90, Waxmann, Münster 2023, ISBN 978-3-8309-4720-2
• Robert Gervasi: A borderland fate, Life and work of the Alsatian composer Leo Justinus Kauffmann (1901-1944), 588 p., € 119.00, Tectum, Baden-Baden 2023, ISBN 978-3-8288-4916-7
• Nicole Jost-Rösch: Alban Berg - narrating composer, composing narrator, 540 p., € 49.00, Edition Text + Kritik, Munich 2023, ISBN 978-3-96707-834-3
• Werner Reinhart, patron of modernism, Music Concepts, Special Volume XI/2023, edited by Ulrich Tadday, 228 p., € 42.00, Edition Text+Kritik, Munich 2023, ISBN 978-3-96707-843-5
• Dominik Susteck: Bone pipes and noiselatte. Hand-Joachim Hespos und die Orgelmusik ab 1962, Schriften zur Neuen Musik vol. 3, 230 p., Are, Cologne 2023, ISBN 978-3-3924522-90-2
• Tobias Heyl: 75 years of G. Henle Verlag, 208 p.,€ 28.00, Hanser, Munich, ISBN 978-3-446-7847-9
• Ute Elena Hamm: "Music to read", Musical-literary hybrids, works by Erik Satie, John Cage, Dieter Schnebel and Ingeborg Bachmann, 649 p., hardcover, € 129.00, Rombach, Baden-Baden 2023, ISBN 978-3-96821-993-6

 

Music books received January-June 2023

• Klaus Steffes-Holländer: Not just on keys. New playing techniques for piano, 136 p., € 49.90, Breitkopf & Härtel, Wiesbaden 2022, ISBN 978-3-7651-0486-2
• Ulrich Menke: The method navigator. Route planner to successful instrumental and ensemble teaching, üben & musizieren, 192 p., € 22.95 Schott, Mainz, ISBN 978-3-7957-3092-5
  >>> Review by Walter Amadeus Ammann
• Tobias Bleek: In the frenzy of the twenties. 1923: Music in a year of extremes, 316 p., € 29.99, Bärenreiter/Metzler, Kassel/Berlin 2023, ISBN 978-3-7618-7245-1
• Gaël Liardon (1973-2018): Anthologie d'un passionné, Organ works, basso continuo, chansons, Bibliothèque cantonale et universitaire, Lausanne 2023, ISBN 978-2-88888.152-0
• Goldberg! Variations on Bach, edited by Violeta Dinescu and Michael Heinemann, (= Bach nach Bach, Vol. 4), 384 p., € 69.80, Dohr, Cologne 2022, ISBN 978-3-86846-171-8
• Roberto Reale: Elements of lamentation in George Enescu's opera Œdipe, Archive for Eastern European Music, 7, BIS-Verlag, Oldenburg 2022, ISBN 978-3-8142-2404-6
• Myriam Marbe, edited by Violeta Dinescu, Michael Heinemann, Roberto Reale, Archiv für osteuropäische Musik, 6, BIS-Verlag, Oldenburg 2022, ISBN 978-3-8142-2393-3
• Reto Weber: Drummin'. In the beginning was the drum - memories, 280 p., Fr. 49.00, editione clandestin, Biel/Bienne 2023, ISBN 978-3-907262-41-2
• Politics of Curatorship - Collective and Affective Interventions, edited by Monia Acciari & Philipp Rhensius, 288 p., € 34.00, Norient Books, Bern 2023, ISBN 978-3-9525444-4-0
• Music and movement with older people. Insight into rhythmic pedagogyedited by Monika Mayr, 220 p., € 24.95, Reichert, Wiesbaden, ISBN 9783752007145

 

 

"What a piece of work! And who knows anything about it? I think it's something very special. And how different it is from the hustle and bustle that prevails today." In his letter to his colleague and contemporary Meinrad Schütter (1910-2006), Robert Suter captured the essentials in just a few words: On the one hand, his enthusiasm for the rich and unusual oeuvre of a composer who wrote many piano songs, numerous opulent orchestral works, a grand opera called Medea and in the form of a Large trade fair even turned to church music, which had become precarious in the 20th century. On the other hand, Suter's words also mention Schütter as an outsider. Ever since Carl Vogler, with almost unbearable arrogance, refused the young composer admission to the Tonkünstlerverein, Schütter had never really been able to gain a foothold in Swiss musical life. Was it because of his peculiar temperament, the latent unwieldiness of his works or conservative guardians of the Grail such as President Vogler?

This book, written by Ute Stoecklin, Meinrad Schütter's companion of many years, provides answers. Rich in biographical facts, equipped with numerous original documents and photographs, not least with many observations of his work and an impressive catalog raisonné, it succeeds in portraying Schütter from various angles. Perhaps the space Stoecklin gave to many contemporary witnesses, including redundant hymns of praise, could have been better used for differentiated work analyses, perhaps an author with a sober and distanced external perspective would have done the book good - Stoecklin's merit remains untouched by such criticism: Her 230-page, thoroughly edited biography provides the basis for a more in-depth study of a composer who - as an accompanying CD of mainly chamber music proves - has been unjustly neglected.

Ute Stoecklin: Meinrad Schütter 1910-2006, Life's work in music or "The art of not letting yourself be disturbed", 230 p., with CD, Fr. 44.50, Müller & Schade, Bern 2010, ISBN 3-905760-06-4

English new edition

Meinrad Schütter - Maverick Swiss Composer, by Ute Stoecklin, translation by Chris Walton. 188 pages, 23.3 x 15.5 cm, 16 color and 33 b/w illustrations, hardcover, ISBN: 978-0-907689-70-6

The new catalog raisonné in the revised edition is by Chris Walton.

 

Changes in the cultural sector due to digitalization have been on the Swiss Music Council's mind for some time. However, the pandemic drastically demonstrated how quickly entire sectors of the economy can be threatened - and how quickly digitalization can create a replacement, at least in some areas. The question of the opportunities and risks offered by digital developments suddenly became very topical.

Against this backdrop, the TA-SWISS foundation, which investigates the opportunities and risks of new technologies on behalf of the federal government, issued a call for tenders in December 2021 for a study on the topic of "Culture and digitalization". The first section of this call for proposals outlines the topic: "The interdisciplinary study aims to assess the opportunities and risks of the effects of digitalization on culture and our social development. It will attempt to answer technical, legal, social, political, economic, ecological and ethical questions. Due to this diversity, it may also consist of several sub-projects."

Three sub-studies - Digitization in music as an important topic

The Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts HSLU, the Swiss Music Council SMR and the Dezentrum Zürich were awarded the contract. While HSLU dealt with the social, economic, political and legal effects of digitization on various cultural areas, the other two studies focused on art (Dezentrum) and music (Swiss Music Council SMR). The studies are available both in book form and online.[1] The studies should be particularly valuable for professional associations, as they provide information on the extent to which digitization should be a topic in association activities.

The SMR study on the music sector focused on the following questions:

- How do those affected assess digitalization in general? Does the perception of risks predominate or are the opportunities rather emphasized?

- Which digital technologies are used and how are they assessed?

- What effects does digitalization have on various aspects of music creation? For example, what about the organization and staging of concerts, the recording and marketing of music or the opportunities to purchase music?

- What future developments are expected? Here, for example, questions are asked about the development of live performances, music lessons or the diversity of music creation.

- Do those affected see a need for political action - and if so, what kind?

In order to answer these questions, an online survey was conducted to gather the opinions of organizations active in the Swiss music sector as well as music professionals (professional and amateur musicians, teachers, employees of organizations active in the music sector).

Optimism and confidence prevail

The surveys yielded some surprising findings. The fact that only just over 6 percent of music professionals and less than 2 percent of organizations in the music sector see digitalization as predominantly a risk could not have been expected in light of the experiences during the pandemic. Overall, the organizations prove to be slightly more optimistic about digitization than the music creators, among whom the amateurs emphasize the opportunities slightly more often than the professional music creators.

With regard to the use of digital technologies, it is clear that they are widely used by both music professionals and organizations and that there is a remarkable openness to new developments in the future. Against this background, it is not surprising that the respondents perceive digital technologies as making musical life easier rather than more difficult. Figure 2 below shows this finding based on the responses of the organizations.

In many of the aspects surveyed, the organizations have hardly changed, but especially when it comes to recording music, distributing digital recordings and collaborating with other organizations, the proportion of those who note simplifications is considerable. Only in terms of media perception and earning opportunities did around a fifth of the organizations face greater difficulties. The fact that almost half of the organizations did not comment on "earning money" is due to the fact that many clubs and associations took part in the survey for which this objective is not a high priority.

The study focused not only on current developments, but also on future prospects. When music creators and organizations active in the music sector were asked how they assess the future of various parts of the music sector, their overall assessment was rather optimistic. In the perception of a majority of respondents, digitalization will lead to a more diverse music world in which live music will continue to play an important role. However, pessimistic attitudes prevail with regard to the future of music clubs and instrumental lessons, and a significant proportion of music professionals and organizations fear that musical life could become harder in the future.

From the Music Council's perspective, the question of the desirability of political intervention in the context of music and digitalization was important, as exerting influence in Bern is one of the SMR's core tasks. Here, too, the answer was different than expected. The chart below shows that most music professionals and organizations do not see any immediate need for intervention:

However, both the detailed analysis and the many individual comments showed that this finding needs to be differentiated and should not be taken to mean that there is no need for action. This is because digitalization exacerbates existing problem areas both within the value chain (creation, distribution, reception) and in the areas of amateur and professional music creation, music education and the music industry.

Recommendations for action based on the overall study

One of the tasks of the TA-SWISS Foundation is to formulate recommendations for policymakers based on the results of studies. With regard to digitalization in the cultural and music sector, these include

- The cultural sector, together with the public sector and society, must take a proactive approach to digitalization in order to be prepared for further developments. Institutions and associations have an important role to play here.

- Digitization should be placed on the agenda of the National Cultural Dialogue as a multi-year priority.

- The "Fair income conditions in the digital environment" measures provided for in the 2025 - 2028 Culture Dispatch should be implemented quickly.

- Taking a proactive approach to digitalization also means establishing it as an integral part of education and training. The associations can also play an important role here.

- Copyright is a perennial issue, but rapid developments such as in artificial intelligence are giving rise to completely new questions. The legal framework should therefore be constantly reviewed and adapted.

- Amateur clubs, especially in music and culture, form the humus on which musical/cultural life can flourish. They should therefore continue to receive targeted support at all levels of government. In addition, constant monitoring is needed in order to closely observe the development of this important form of social coexistence.

- Music education is already under pressure today due to social developments. Digitalization is intensifying this pressure, which is why music professionals see difficult times ahead for music education. To counteract this, teachers must be enabled to master digital tools and use them in a targeted manner.

Former Federal Councillor Moritz Leuenberger, who chaired the group accompanying the three studies, commented on the subject as follows[2]:

"Digitalization is shaping the way we think and feel. It has become an indispensable servant of our culture, but at the same time has long since taken up the baton. To prevent it from becoming the sole conductor, we are required to sound out its opportunities and dangers and set the pace ourselves."

A special feature of this study is that the central content can be experienced interactively on a platform, with one interactive room per sub-study: https://www.proofofculture.ch/

 

Footnotes

1st TA-SWISS publication series (ed.)(2024): Culture and digitization. Zollikon: vdf. The text and a summary can be found online at: https://www.ta-swiss.ch/kultur-und-digitalisierung

2 Cf. the TA-SWISS publication mentioned above, p. 7.

Table of contents

Focus

"We are in a transitional phase"
Interview with Kieran Pavel

"It's the Wild West at the moment"
How it will turn out for the creatives is completely open

(italics = summary in German of the original French article)

Critiques

New releases Sound carrier, Websites, Sheet music

Echo

"His music was foreign to the Americans"
Nuria Schoenberg Nono on Arnold Schönberg
Link to the article on the website of the author Max Nyffeler

100 years of Klaus Huber

L'EJCM reçoit un orgue

An exposure, an exposure
Alfred Schnittke's opera "Life with an Idiot" in the production by Kirill Serebrennikov

Swimming course for lifelong healthy music-making
"National Health Day Music" by Swissmedmusica

Deep sounds, plastic sounds
Rich harvest this year at the Donaueschingen Music Days from October 17 to 20

Thinking about music criticism
On September 23 and 24, 2024, a renowned panel of experts discussed at the ZHdK

Base

Articles and news from the music associations

Swiss Federal Orchestra Association (EOV) / Société Fédérale des Orchestres (SFO)

Konferenz Musikhochschulen Schweiz (KMHS) / Conférence des Hautes Ecoles de Musique Suisse (CHEMS)

Kalaidos University of Music / Kalaidos Haute École de Musique

Swiss Music Council (SMR) / Conseil Suisse de la Musique (CSM)

CHorama

Swiss Society for Music Medicine (SMM) / Association suisse de Médecine de la Musique (SMM)

Swiss Musicological Society (SMG) / Société Suisse de Musicologie (SSM)

Swiss Musicians' Association (SMV) / Union Suisse des Artistes Musiciens (USDAM)

Schweizerischer Musikpädagogischer Verband (SMPV) / Société Suisse de Pédagogie Musicale (SSPM)

SONART - Musicians Switzerland

Swiss Youth Music Competition Foundation (SJMW)

Arosa Culture

SUISA - Cooperative Society of Authors and Publishers of Music

Swiss Association of Music Schools (VMS) / Association Suisse des Écoles de Musique (ASEM)

 

AI symphony
Puzzle by Torsten Möller

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Order issue for CHF 10.- (+ CHF 2.- shipping costs)

The only suboptimal thing was the acoustics in the huge Basilica of San Paolo fuori le mura in Rome. With more than five seconds of reverberation, even Bruckner, who composed his symphonies with organ practice in mind, had to capitulate in places. Otherwise, the first foreign guest performance by this new orchestra, known as the Swiss National Orchestra, or SNO for short, was a complete success. The concert took place as part of the Vatican-sponsored international festival Musica e Arte Sacra took place. With a certain amount of protocol: according to the organizers, around 2,000 visitors included political celebrities from Italy and Switzerland, including the Swiss ambassadors to Italy and the Vatican.

There's no shortage of symphony orchestras of all kinds, so why found a new one, I thought before my trip to Rome. However, the quiet scepticism with which I looked forward to the performance of the orchestra, which I had previously only heard in ominous press releases, evaporated with the first notes of Puccini's Symphonic Prelude, the second composer with a memorial year of 2024 after Bruckner. A beautifully rounded wind choir, followed by a gently blossoming string tutti - a perfect beginning that immediately captivated and made a basic characteristic of the orchestra clear: the organic interaction of the orchestral groups, carried by a common breath. The delicate opening, intoned with somnambulistic certainty, made us want to hear the orchestra play Wagner's Lohengrin-prelude or with Debussy.

Pleasurably professional

The striking presence of this opening could be heard in the five rehearsals in Basel that preceded the trip to Rome, a credit to the conductor and former Zurich opera director Ralf Weikert. His thorough rehearsals proved particularly effective with Anton Bruckner's Third Symphony, which was performed in its final version from 1889. The orchestra brilliantly fought the latent battle against the over-acoustics, which unfortunately blurred the abrupt dynamic contrasts and repeatedly obscured the structure in the massive tutti - especially in the third movement. As far as could be heard, the precision of the interplay never faltered. In the slow movement, the winds impressed with their finely coordinated playing, the long, composed reverberation of the horns sounded magical; the effect here was exceptionally supported by the acoustics. The fourth movement: a clear-cut presentation of the contrasting musical characters, pure high energy and a striking conclusion to the symphonic events.

The concert in Rome was an artistic success. The reasons for this lie not only in the disciplined preparation, but also in the professionalism and, not least, in the joy of playing and the shared desire of all participants. The fact that they are a motley crew is not noticeable in their performance. The chemistry is right, and anyone who talks to the musicians will get an impression of the high spirits, if not euphoria, that prevails among them. Rahel Cunz, concertmaster of the Musikkollegium Winterthur, sums it up: "This is the first time I've played together with most of them, and I find that absolutely fascinating. They are all here voluntarily and are really enjoying it. I hope you can feel that in the audience too. We take incredible pleasure in interacting with each other. This creates a unique dynamic, and we make our beautiful music with this positive energy."

From local and international orchestras

Swiss National Orchestra: it sounds ambitious, but is based on an idea that is as simple as it is brilliant. The majority of its members are highly qualified Swiss musicians from orchestras in Switzerland and abroad, many of whom hold top positions as soloists and section leaders. In order to give young talent a chance, some talented students are also invited to take part. Among the members of the Swiss orchestras, those from Zurich, Basel, Geneva and Bern are particularly well represented; those working abroad come from the symphony and opera orchestras in Barcelona, Bergen, Lyon, Berlin, Munich and Stockholm, among others.

The beginnings of the SNO date back to 2016, when the Ticino musician and current artistic director Igor Longato made its first attempt at founding the orchestra with a few like-minded people, and after a long start-up period in which the project gradually took shape, it has now gone public in 2024 with two different programs with changing conductors. At the debut concert in Bern on August 1, 2024, it was John Axelrod, in Rome now Weikert.

Privately financed

With its flexible structure, the SNO follows the model of orchestras such as the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, founded in 1981, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra or the special ensembles for early music. In comparison with these orchestras, which are firmly anchored in the international concert scene, it is still in its infancy, but can boast the unique selling point of being "Swiss made". And with the enthusiasm of the newcomers. There are certainly opportunities for the future, not only because of the high quality of the performers, but also because of the obviously secure financial and institutional basis. Thanks to private patrons and foundations who are fully committed to the project, the orchestra is largely independent of public subsidies; the costs of the current project, amounting to a substantial six-figure sum, were also manageable in this way. In addition, there is a good network of personalities and institutions from politics and business, which can significantly expand the orchestra's radius of action both nationally and internationally.

Scoring points with music instead of just Swissness

The path to the SNO's long-term rise to the ranks of international orchestras therefore appears to be paved. However, for an orchestra that does not have a permanent home and, with the exception of the annually scheduled concerts in Bern, performs at constantly changing locations, specific questions of identity also arise. Two aspects in particular are currently important. On the one hand, there is the image. The orchestra's public relations work to date has sold it short; the website is rudimentary, the press releases show little understanding of the genuinely artistic aspects of the company and primarily emphasize the protocol function. Without appropriate communication skills, however, it will be difficult for the orchestra to gain the position in the music business that it deserves.

And then there's the Swiss connection: less ostentatious Swissness would probably bring in more. Comparisons with Swiss branded goods such as watches and national team football obscure the focus on the core business, and that is music. It is not an export product like any other. The desired role of the orchestra as a musical ambassador for Switzerland will be all the more successful the more it can shine artistically. The advertising effect will then be self-evident and does not need to be publicized. The prerequisite is programming that allows it to compete with the big orchestras, as in the case of Bruckner. There should be no shortage of works with a Swiss connection, from Mendelssohn and Brahms to Rachmaninov, Stravinsky and beyond. And unlike the Nati, they are not in a slump.

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Transparency notice:
The trip was organized at the invitation of the orchestra.
Website of the Swiss National Orchestra: https://sno.ch
Website of the author Max Nyffeler: https://beckmesser.info