Menuhin Festival Gstaad: Joie de vivre
Starting next month and running throughout August until the beginning of September, the Menuhin Festival Gstaad will once more be welcoming the world’s top musicians. This year’s theme, “Joie de vivre”, is centered on the emotional qualities of music. Certainly, music is close to life. Music has the capacity to move the listener and provoke an emotional response: By way of a poignant change of key or tempo, music can inspire feelings of joy and despair, and moods can swing from lightheartedness to doubt and fear.
Above: The Nigel Kennedy Quintet will be performing at this year's Menuhin Festival Gstaad.
Catering for all budgets and tastes, there will be a total of 42 official concerts given in various locations throughout the region: Saanen, Gstaad, Lauenen, Rougemont, Zweisimmen, Gsteig, Château-d’Oex and Vers l’Eglise. Highlights include a performance of Tchaikovsky’s “Sleeping Beauty” by the London Symphony Orchestra, a tribute to Rostropovich by the Russian National Orchestra, a youth production of “The Nutcracker”, and famous British violinist and ex-Menuhin pupil Nigel Kennedy who will be presenting his latest jazz compositions.
Special one-off concerts include a brunch at the Alphütte les Ouges where Russian folklore will be joining Swiss folk music, and there will also be an “Opera-fondue” up on the Glacier with Swiss soprano Noëmi Nadelmann who will be singing Gershwin, Bernstein and Cole Porter. Another world famous soprano, Cecilia Bartoli (above) will also be singing at the farewell gala concert, although many are likely to be disappointed because tickets for this unique performance are already sold out.
I remember when the Bauchau's started this concert series when I was in school at Montesano ? Anybody else of that vintage around ?
Posted by: Leslie McCarver | Friday, 20 June 2008 at 05:37