Outstanding artists and recordings 2014
On January 20, the ICMA jury announced this year's winners. Among them are Charles Dutoit, Andreas Häfliger and the Coro della Radiotelevisione della Svizzera Italiana and I Barocchisti under the direction of Diego Fasolis.
The International Classical Music Awards (ICMA) are the only international music awards for classical music that are presented by an independent jury. It consists exclusively of professional classical music critics working for magazines, radio stations and internet services from 13 countries. The following media are currently represented: Andante (Turkey), Classic Radio (Finland), Crescendo (Belgium), Fono Forum (Germany), Gramofon (Hungary), IMZ (Austria), Kultura (Russia), MDR-Figaro (Germany), Musica (Italy), Musik & Theater (Switzerland), Opera (England), Orpheus Radio (Russia), pizzicato (Luxembourg), Radio 100,7 (Luxembourg), Resmusica.com (France), Rondo Classic (Finland) and Scherzo (Spain).
The jury selected 16 CD and DVD productions from 264 nominated productions. It also presented seven special awards to recognize outstanding musicians and producers. The Swiss conductor Charles Dutoit was awarded a prize for his life's work, Andreas Staier was named Artist of the Year and Adrien Boisseau Young Artist of the Year. The title Label of the Year goes to the Spanish company Glossa Music, and the jury was impressed by the best classical music website, that of Metropolitan Opera Archive. The SWR Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden and Freiburg and the Ludwig van Beethoven Society in Krakow will also each receive an award for special achievements.
Award-winning CDs and DVDs:
Violinist Sergey Khachatryan has been awarded this year's Credit Suisse Young Artist Award. At CHF 75,000, the prize is one of the most valuable in the industry and includes a concert with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra at the Lucerne Festival this summer.
Born in Armenia, Sergey Khachatryan won the Jean Sibelius Violin Competition in Helsinki in 2000 and first prize at the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels in 2005. In June 2013, his latest CD with the violin sonatas by Johannes Brahms was released on the Naïve label.
The Credit Suisse Young Artist Award is an initiative of the Lucerne Festival, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gesellschaft für Musikfreunde Wien and the Credit Suisse Foundation. It provides young musicians with funding and performance opportunities to develop their careers.
Previous prizewinners are Quirine Viersen (cello/2000), Patricia Kopatchinskaja (violin/2002), Sol Gabetta (cello/2004), Martin Helmchen (piano/2006), Antoine Tamestit (viola/2008), Nicolas Altstaedt (cello/2010) and Vilde Frang (violin/2012).
Martin Fahlenbock becomes a lecturer at the HKB
At the beginning of the fall semester 2014, flutist Martin Fahlenbock, a member of ensemble recherche Freiburg im Br. since 1992, will take up a position as a lecturer at the Bern University of the Arts (HKB).
After his studies at the Hochschule für Musik in Hamburg with Karlheinz Zöller, his training was complemented by encounters with Jean Pierre Rampal, André Jaunet and Peter Lukas Graf.
Before his Freiburg engagement, Fahlenbock was a regular guest with the Ensemble Modern Frankfurt, had a temporary contract as solo flutist with the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra (1985 to 1987), and was deputy solo flutist in the Freiburg Philharmonic Orchestra from 1987 to 1992.
Fahlenbock is a regular guest at conservatories in Chicago, Beijing, Moscow, Salzburg and at the Fondation Royaumont in France.
Nominations for the Swiss Jazz Award 2014
The Swiss Jazz Award is being presented by Radio Swiss Jazz and Jazz Ascona for the eighth time this year. The public has the opportunity to vote for one of six nominated bands between January 15 and February 28, 2014.
The nominees are the formation Belleville with violinist Adam Taubitz (gypsy jazz and more), the young Zurich band Blue Bolero, the quartet of saxophonist Daniel Blanc, singer Nicole Herzog with Bernese pianist Stewy von Wattenwyl, the trio of Winterthur-born pianist Ralf Ruh and the group Y-Jazz from Yverdon-les-bains.
The six bands were selected by Radio Swiss Jazz, Jazz Ascona and a jury of experts from bands that have released a CD in the last 18 months and have been most popular with Radio Swiss Jazz listeners.
The Swiss Jazz Award winners in recent years have been the Chris Conz Trio (2013), Christine Jaccard & Dave Ruosch (2012), Alexia Gardner (2011) and the Dani Felber Big Band (2010). Hazy Osterwald (2009) and Pepe Lienhard (2006) received a special lifetime achievement award.
You can vote on www.swissjazzaward.ch
SRF lets brass bands compete against each other
Swiss Radio and Television is looking for the best brass bands in Switzerland for the new music show "Kampf der Orchester" (after "Kampf der Chöre"). A selection will compete against each other in three live shows in the fall of 2014.
All competing formations are assigned a prominent team member who must be integrated into the group and actively participate in the shows.
According to the Swiss Television announcement, brass music formations from Switzerland that have their own repertoire, can play pop songs and choreograph their performances are eligible to enter. There are no restrictions regarding the size or type of formation.
More information on registration and the conditions of participation can be found at srf.ch/kampfderorchester to find.
Subsidies from the canton and city of Schaffhausen
The Canton and City of Schaffhausen are inviting applications for the 2014 funding grants to provide targeted support for cultural activities. Professionally working artists from all cultural sectors are invited to apply.
Cultural practitioners from the Canton of Schaffhausen (no age limit) who are either entitled to reside in the canton, have been resident in the Canton of Schaffhausen for at least three years or have previously resided in the Canton of Schaffhausen for at least fifteen years are eligible to participate.
The production location (studio location) is deemed to be the place of residence. A panel of independent experts decides on the awarding of grants. A sum of CHF 110,000 is available each year.
The guidelines and application forms can be obtained from:
Subsidies office
Department of Education, Secretariat
Herrenacker 3
8200 Schaffhausen
kulturfoerderung(at)ktsh.ch
More info: www.sh.ch/index.php?id=614
Orchestra Mozart suspends activities for the time being
According to international press reports, the Orchestra Mozart, founded by Claudio Abbado, is in serious difficulties. It has had to suspend its concert activities for the time being. The supporting foundation is lacking sponsors.
The financing of the ensemble, which was founded in 2004, stands and falls with the presence of its founder. However, Abbado has had to cancel all concerts since September for health reasons. According to the orchestra manager Fabio Roversi, the financial backers have therefore withdrawn.
It remains to be seen when Abbado will return to the podium. The Orchestra Mozart was due to perform at the Lucerne Festival at Easter. As the NZZ writes, festival director Michael Häfliger is still in negotiations with the ensemble to find a solution for the engagement.
Swiss music market continues to shrink
According to an official press release, the 30 music labels that make up IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry) Switzerland achieved total sales of 84.8 million Swiss francs in 2014, 8% less than in the previous year. Swiss repertoire contributed around 27 percent to this result.
The development is characterized by two trends: on the one hand, the decline in sales in the traditional CD business is continuing, while on the other hand, the extremely dynamic digital business is also undergoing a structural change, in which the established download offerings are coming under pressure from streaming service providers. IFPI members have invested around CHF 6 million (around 26%) of gross sales in the development of national talent.
Sales from the sale of CDs and other physical sound carriers contributed CHF 47.5 million to total sales (2013: CHF 53.7 million, -12%), of which around CHF 2 million was attributable to vinyl and other sound carriers. This decline in sales basically follows the general trend of CDs being replaced by online music consumption. The trend has been reinforced by the persistent strength of the Swiss franc since 2010 and the resulting direct imports by retailers and end consumers, which in turn has led to a reduction in sales space for CDs.
According to IFPI Switzerland, the share of such directly imported CDs is estimated at around 30 percent of purchases by Swiss end consumers; this income bypasses Swiss distributors. On the other hand, it is also apparent that the decline in sales in the CD business has recently slowed down: After a very drastic decline in previous years, it amounted to CHF -6.2 million (-12%) in 2014. The share of physical sound carriers in total sales amounted to 56% in 2014 (2013:
58 percent).
Kilometers through musical worlds
Musikmesse, the international industry meeting place for instruments, sheet music, music production and marketing, takes place in Frankfurt from March 12 to 15. Tip for Swiss guests.
A month earlier than in other years, the Frankfurt trade fair is all about music. Walking through five huge halls, the entire value chain of the music industry is on display: from beat (drums and percussion) to bow (plucked and stringed instruments), from midi (keyboards, digital pianos, synthesizers, church organs) to forte (pianos, grand pianos, historical keyboard instruments), from nota (sheet music and specialist literature) to musikbiz (record labels, music publishers, studios, pressing plants and concert organizers, festivals and marketing platforms, institutions, academies and universities) - from the idea to making music to listening to the music on recordings or on the Internet.
Audience and prices
Gartmann heads the Bern Graduate School of the Arts
Thomas Gartmann has been appointed head of the joint Graduate School of the Arts by the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Bern and the Bern University of the Arts (HKB).
The Graduate School of the Arts (GSA) is a cooperation between the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Bern and the Bern University of Applied Sciences, Department of Bern University of the Arts. It is an interdisciplinary doctoral program aimed at both researching artists and academics who are interested in artistic practice.
At the GSA, theory and practice are closely intertwined, as are basic and practice-oriented research. At the GSA, doctoral students realize their own project in a stimulating environment that introduces them to scientific and artistic networks. Doctoral students benefit from synergy effects between the two universities and can develop specific skills.
During the three-year pilot phase from fall 2011 to summer 2014, the Graduate School was open to members and graduates of the University of Bern and Bern University of the Arts.
Bern Symphony Orchestra on tour in Germany
The Bern Symphony Orchestra makes its first guest appearance abroad with its chief conductor Mario Venzago. The soloist is the young pianist Lise de la Salle.
The program of the BSO's German tour includes Brahms' Third Symphony and Ravel's Rapsodie espagnole Arthur Honegger Liturgical symphony. Lise de la Salle will perform Saint-Saens' second piano concerto and Chopin's second piano concerto.
The concerts will take place on February 1 in the Tonhalle Düsseldorf (Ravel, Saint-Saëns, Brahms), on February 2 in the Heinrich-Lades-Halle Erlangen (Ravel, Chopin, Honegger) and on February 5 in the Liederhalle Stuttgart (Ravel, Chopin, Brahms).
Since July 2011, the BSO has been part of the new institution "Konzert Theater Bern" in the federal city. Mario Venzago has been chief conductor of the BSO since the beginning of the 2010/11 season. He has recently recorded Bruckner's third and sixth symphonies on CD with the orchestra.
Eleven orchestras make a strong case for current work
More than 33,000 listeners by 2016 for a new repertoire of symphonic works by Swiss composers - this is the goal of the "Œuvres Suisses" project, which was launched on December 12, 2013 at the Palazzo dei Congressi in Lugano.
New Swiss orchestral works are therefore to be created in order to improve collaboration between contemporary composers and symphony orchestras. This centuries-old connection, the backbone of European music history, seems to have been in a serious crisis for at least thirty years. Not a single composition written after 1980 has been included in the repertoire of symphony orchestras or, as equivalent works to those of Ravel, Brahms, Beethoven or Mozart, regularly included in concert programs around the world.
However, this does not mean that no new compositions have been written in the meantime. On the contrary, we have become acquainted with numerous and valuable new works that have been appreciated by critics and audiences alike. The fact is, however, that it has not been possible to integrate these pieces into the repertoire, and this inevitably leads to the question: can symphony orchestras still make their contribution to new symphonic music-making in Switzerland today?
33 new orchestral works
Tower carillons in Switzerland
The organ is often regarded as the largest and heaviest instrument, but the tower carillon, which can comprise more than 40 bells, is often forgotten. There are six such instruments in Switzerland. On considère souvent l'orgue comme étant le plus grand et le plus lourd des instruments. C'est oublier le carillon, qui peut regrouper plus de quarante cloches. There are six of these instruments in Switzerland.
The organ is often regarded as the largest and heaviest instrument, but the tower carillon, which can comprise more than 40 bells, is often forgotten. There are six such instruments in Switzerland.
The organ is often considered to be the largest and longest of the instruments. That's without mentioning the carillon, which can contain more than quarante cloches. There are six of these instruments in Switzerland.
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- Daniel Thomas plays on the carillon of the Saint Jean-Baptiste church in Taninges/Haute-Savoie Daniel Thomas au Carillon de l'église Saint Jean-Baptiste à Taninges en Haute-Savoie
The French word, partly also used in German carillon for glockenspiel goes back to the Vulgar Latin quadrinio or the Latin quaternio the name for a group of four. The first mechanical carillons in the Middle Ages consisted of four bells. To this day, there is a whole range of small chimes in Switzerland with four, five or six bells. They are played with the help of chains or ropes attached to the clapper. Some also have simple keyboards with large wooden keys or sticks. They are operated by the carillonneur in a standing position and hardly allow any differentiated playing. Such chimes can be found in Bourg-Saint-Pierre (VS), Salvan (VS), Gruyères (FR) and Bulle ((FR). In Ticino, for example in Muralto and Bellinzona, there are also models with metal keyboards. However, it is only on larger instruments that a nuanced and complex performance can unfold, almost like on a piano or organ.
The World Carillon Federation (WCF) defines a carillon as an instrument made of tuned bronze bells that are played on a keyboard made of sticks. Only carillons with at least 23 bells are eligible. There are six such instruments in Switzerland, five of them in French-speaking Switzerland (see box). They span three to four octaves (35 to 49 bells, the heaviest of which can weigh several tons). The art of carillon playing developed several hundred years ago in Flanders (Holland, Belgium, northern France). Even today, this is where most of the installations and the most famous players can be found.
- Bells and clappers of the Carillon de Chantemerle
The bells are cast from bronze and are harmonically tuned to each other, so that chordal playing is possible. They are played using the keyboard and pedal. The large wooden keys or sticks are connected to the clappers via a mechanism that enables an easily responsive, musical touch. There is no damping system; once struck, the bell swings freely.
Development in Switzerland
In Switzerland, the first carillon was installed in the church of Carouge in 1926. It has 28 bells and a keyboard made of large wooden keys, so it does not correspond to the usual carillon, which has sticks. However, this type of construction was common at the beginning of the 20th century and was then abandoned almost everywhere except in Geneva. The city's cathedral was equipped with a 16-bell mechanism in 1931, which was increased to 20 bells in 1986 and 37 in 2011.
In 1953, the parish priest of Pully, Marc Vernet, who had previously been a carillonneur in Belgium, brought the Flemish style of carillon with sticks to Switzerland: it was on his initiative that the Carillon de Chantemerle was built. In 1985, the Zofingia Society donated a carillon with 16 bells to the church in Zofingen, which was extended to 24 in 1995.
With 36 new bells (the old ones were deemed inferior and sold) from Rüetschi, Carouge became the first carillon to go over three octaves in 2001. Since then, concerts have been held every Saturday on (or rather above) the market square. This was followed in 2004 by the first four-octave carillon in the abbey church of Saint-Maurice in Valais. And 24 additional bells are currently being cast for the Chantemerle carillon in Pully. There will therefore soon be a second four-octave instrument in Switzerland, which will allow the performance of large repertoire pieces as well as works for two carillonneurs (four hands and four feet).
- New console of the Carillon de Chantemerle.
- Photo: G. Bodden
Carillonneurs: training and repertoire
The carillonneur needs a special instrument for practicing, as he only wants to expose the surroundings to mature pieces. In these practice carillons, a soft sound is produced with metal slats, tubular bells or recorded bell tones. There is no school for carillonneurs in Switzerland. Professional training leading to a diploma must be completed in Holland (Nederlandse Beiaardschool in Amersfoort and Carillon Instituut Nederland in Dordrecht) or Belgium (Ecole Royale de Carillon in Mechelen).
The repertoire consists mainly of original compositions and transcriptions of classical works. Most of the pieces are written for standard instruments of four octaves. In Flanders, such pieces have been written since the 18th century, so the repertoire is broad. The carillonneurs also often improvise on well-known melodies, as is customary in the carillon's region of origin, especially at market times when there are many people in the streets.
There are still too few large instruments in Switzerland to make a full-time job as a carillonneur possible. This would require one player to be responsible for three to four instruments and their respective settings. The job is therefore usually combined with an organist or pianist position.
The great carillons of Switzerland
Geneva
- Carouge, Sainte-Croix church, 36 bells (f#1, g#1-f#4; 1 Aubry XVII, 1 Piton 1789, 1 Kervand 1839, 33 Rüetschi 2001), players: Constant Deschenaux, Andreas Friedrich and Yves Roure
- Geneva, Saint-Pierre Cathedral, 37 bells (e1, a1, b1-a4; 1 Fribor vers 1460, 16 Paccard/Rüetschi 1931, 1 Rüetschi 1991, 19 Paccard 2011), player: Vincent Thévenaz
Vaud
- Pully, church De la Rosiaz, carillon de Chantemerle, 24 bells (48 from 2014; a1, b1-a3; 19 Eijsbouts 1953, 5 Perner 2011, 24 Simon Laudy 2013); players: Daniel Thomas and Jean-Francois Cavin.
Wallis
- Lens, Saint-Pierre-aux-Liens church, 24 bells (c1, f1, g1, a1-f3; 2 Rüetschi 1958, 21 Rüetschi 1967, 1 Rüetschi 1995). Player: Jean-Daniel Emery
- Saint-Maurice, Abbey, 49 bells (g sharp, c sharp1, d sharp1-c sharp5; 2 Dreffet 1818, 1 Rüetschi 1947, 1 Paccard 1998, 45 Eijsbouts 2003); player: Francois Roten
Aargau
- Zofingen, Stiftsturm, 25 bells (c2-c4; Rüetschi 1983/1985/1989/1996/1997/2005); players: Andreas Friedrich and Karl Kipfer
Daniel Thomas
... is a carillonneur at the Carilon de Chantemerle in Pully and a board member of the Guild of Carillonneurs and Campanologists of Switzerland GCCS, which also publishes the association's organ. Campanæ helveticæ publishes. www.campanae.ch
Literature:
Glocken - Lebendige Klangzeugen / Des témoins vivants et sonnants. Confédération Suisse, Office fédéral de la Culture, 2008. Review in the SMZ 12/2010
Bells
What does it actually mean when bells ring? We listen to "bilingual" ringing at the language border, the tubular bells in the orchestra, the carillon and English change ringing. In addition, the manager of the last bell foundry in Switzerland talks about historical techniques and today's challenges.
What does it actually mean when bells ring? We listen to "bilingual" ringing at the language border, the tubular bells in the orchestra, the carillon and English change ringing. In addition, the manager of the last bell foundry in Switzerland talks about historical techniques and today's challenges.
Focus
What does that sound like?
Different bells from Swiss bell towers
Bell casting is never the same twice
René Spielmann on tradition and science
Le carillonneur et les grands carillons en Suisse
Le plus lourd de tous les instruments
German version and sound sample
Quand l'orchestre fait sonner les cloches
Un instrument recrée la sonorité des cloches : le carillon tubulaire
Where bells ring for hours
The tradition of change ringing in England
Article, PDF for download and sound sample
... and also
RESONANCE
Le studio de la Fondation Tibor Varga dans la tourmente
L'orchestra prova a tornare strumento della creazione
"Œuvres Suisses" - New symphonic music for Switzerland
Reviews Classic, Rock & Pop - New releases books, sheet music, CDs
Carte Blanche with John Wolf Brennan
CAMPUS
IRMAS Institut de recherche des HEM et de la Haute école de Théâtre
Corelli as a model Symposium of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis
Reviews New publications in teaching literature
klaxon Children's page
SERVICE
Readers' trip to Krakow
FINAL
Riddle Dirk Wieschollek is looking for
Bern University of the Arts with a limited number of places
In the 2014/2015 academic year, the Bern University of Applied Sciences will continue to apply admission restrictions in the fields of music, theater and other arts as well as in the field of design. This has been decided by the cantonal government of Bern.
A total of 385 places are available for new students at the University of the Arts. Admission is determined by an aptitude test.
The cantonal government has also imposed admission restrictions for the Bachelor's degree courses in physiotherapy, midwifery, nursing and nutrition and dietetics. There are a total of 325 places for new students on these four courses. Here too, aptitude tests determine admission.