Swiss Music Night 2018

 

The Swiss Music Night – 5th edition 2018 „Sound of Switzerland“ 

was presenting a musical tour throughout the varied landscapes of Switzerland - with Switzerland’s most distinguished representatives of traditional Swiss Folk music, the program follows musically the "Grand Tour of Switzerland". 

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It was a program showing the varied Swiss Folk traditions in all its facets. From Appenzell's striking music with violin and hammered dulcimer to the virtuosic Ländlermusik of central Switzerland with Schwyzerörgeli (typical Swiss accordion) as well as the vivid music from Ticino and the french part of Switzerland the concert offers a unique experience of exciting and original music following the "Grand Tour of Switzerland".

The typical Swiss Yodeling was also part of the program. Nadja Räss is currently the best-known yodel singer in Switzerland and Bernhard Betschart captivates the audience worldwide with his very original way of yodeling. The concert showed the "Sound of Switzerland" at its highest level.

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Swiss Music Night 2018 – The Artists

 

Nadja Räss - voice, yodeling

 

Nadja Räss is one of the most versatile and celebrated yodel-singers in Switzerland.

She interprets new compositions as well as all different styles of  the traditional yodel.

Since 2012 she has been artistic and operational manager of the vocal music institute „KlangWelt Toggenburg“ with its international festival „Naturstimmen“ taking place every year.

 

She is an enthusiastic collector of historical yodel-literature and ancient sources.

Together with Stephan K. Haller, she initiated the „International Yodel Symposium“. This annual event with presentations, workshops and concerts takes place alternately in the Toggenburg (within the festival "Naturstimmen") and in another place in the Alpine region.

 

She sings regularly as soloist and in ensembles with Switzerland’s most distinguished musicians. 2016 she was nominated for the „Swiss Music Price“ of the Swiss government.

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Bernhard "Beny" Betschart - voice, yodeling, guitar, büchel (small alphorn), traditional Swiss percussion

 

Bernhard has grown up with the traditional archaic style of Yodel from central Switzerland, called „Juuz“.

When he was a child, at home yodelling was part of everyday life. Already as a five-year-old he stood with his family on stage and could be seen on the TV. Thus, Beny Betschart appeared in the well-known documentary films about the traditional yodel of Hugo Zemp (1983 to 1984 and 2015).

 

Since then he became one of the most known singers of archaic yodelling, and continues this beautiful tradition with a lot of enthusiasm at workshops, lectures and with his group „Natur pur“ („pure nature“).

Beside singing he is a versatile multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, „büchel“ (a small version of the alphorn) and most of the traditional Swiss percussion instruments.

 

With the acoustic band "Black Creek" he is also at home in folk, rock and country. In the popular Swiss TV show "The Voice of Switzerland", he was highly appreciated by the audience and jurors, as singer of the "Bernheart Choir“.

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Andreas Gabriel - violin

 

Andreas Gabriel belongs to a younger generation of violinists who are characterized by their versatility and who move with virtuosity from one musical genre to another. 

 

He comes from a family steeped in the Swiss music tradition. He began to play the violin at the age of seven, and was soon a member of the family ensemble along with his sisters, accompanied by their father on the double bass. They were known all across Switzerland, played on the radio and TV, and recorded two CDs. After completing his schooling, Andreas Gabriel studied the violin at the Lucerne Music Academy with Daniel Dodds. He also learnt matters of historical performance practice. 

 

After finishing his studies, he discovered his roots anew, founded with Fabian Müller the group „Helvetic Fiddlers“ and began to research into ‘lost’ Swiss fiddle music. He is in demand as currently Switzerland’s most distinguished Folk violin player, soloist and member in several Folk groups as well as a teacher, imparting his knowledge to others through courses and workshops.

 

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Markus Flückiger - Schwyzerörgeli (typical Swiss accordion)

 

Markus Flückiger started as a 6-year-old with lessons on the Schwyzerörgeli (Swiss diatonic accordeon) and was early discovered as one of the outstanding young talents on this instrument.

Through his tremendous virtuosity and musicality he is considered today as the most important player of our time, discovering a new virtuosity for this instrument. With bands like „pareglish“ and „Hujässler“ he found new and modern ways for the Swiss Folk music and became one of its important innovators. Today he plays mainly with Max Lässer's „Überland Orchestra“ as well as the bands „Hujässler“ and „Rampass“. With Andreas Gabriel and Pirmin Huber he forms the trio "Ambäck" and performs also often with yodel singer Nadja Räss as a duo.

 

Markus Flückiger is a lecturer for Schwyzerörgeli at the Lucerne University of Music, as well as the musical director of the ensemble of the university "Alpini Vernähmlassig".

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Nicolas Senn - Hackbrett (Swiss hammered dulcimer)

 

At the age of four, Nicolas Senn saw for the first time the Swiss „Hackbrett“ (hammered dulcimer) with its 125 strings and was immediately fascinated. Meanwhile, he became a virtuoso himself and Switzerland’s most popular Hackbrett-player. 

 

He performed In Russia, India, China, Thailand, America, Kuwait and for an caritative project even on the top of the Kilimanjaro. After several CD productions as well as TV appearances, he was awarded prizes such as "Prix Walo" or the "Stadl Star" and won the "Grand Prix of Folk Music" in Switzerland. 

 

Since 2012, he has been hosting the award-winning "Potzmusig" TV-broadcast as well as the big live gala "Viva Volksmusik" on the first Swiss TV-program. In addition, Nicolas Senn has been an ambassador for Appenzeller cheese for ten years.

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Fabian Müller - viola, cello & artistic director

 

Fabian Müller is one of the most successful Swiss composers of his generation. Besides his career as composer, he has been involved with Swiss folk music since childhood. Today he is acknowledged as one of the prime trailblazers and innovators in this field. 

 

He spent ten years (1991 to 2002) preparing the publication of the Hanny Christen Collection, a ten-volume anthology of folk music with over 10'000 tunes from the 19th Century, which initiated a new era for the traditional music of his country. He was the founder and director of the Mülirad publishing company 1990-2006,and initiated the National Swiss Folk Music Institute «House of Folk Music» in Altdorf. Beside other awards he was nominated for the „Swiss Music Price“ 2016 of the Federal Office of Culture of Switzerland.

 

Fabian Müller has sought out new paths in folk music as a member of the ‘New Original Appenzeller String Music Project’ (CD released on Musiques Suisses), and he was furthermore a member of several innovative Swiss Folk music projects.

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Pirmin Huber - bass

 

The young contrabassist Pirmin Huber is well known in the new "Alpine Folk Music" scene. Experimental forms of traditional music, improvisation and influences of contemporary music characterize his style and versatile interest in music.

 

Pirmin, born in 1987, grew up in a musical family in the central part of Switzerland. He completed an apprenticeship as a carpenter, before he decided entirely for the music. After a bachelor's degree with a focus on folk music at the Lucerne University, he completed a master's degree in music pedagogy in 2016. 

 

He is also in demand as composer of new Folk music and had several premieres  at festivals like «Stubete am See», the festival for new Swiss folk music. He performs in several groups - from the very traditional Swiss Folk music to jazz or electro pop. He lives in Lucerne.

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Musical concept and artistic direction „Swiss Music Night“

Pi-Chin Chien & Fabian Müller