Annette Dannecker, Paola De Luca - Ladies and gentlemen, dear colleagues,

We wish you all the very best for the new year! The past year has demanded a lot of flexibility from us; we take this with us into the new year and at the same time hope that it will be a little calmer and more predictable and that we will soon be able to practise our profession without hindrance and teach and make music freely again!

It was a bitter setback when our application for funding from the Federal Office of Culture was rejected last spring. We wanted to use these subsidies to promote professionalization and represent our members even more effectively. The application was rejected because the Federal Office of Culture associated the association almost exclusively with music education. It was not recognized that our members as a whole correspond to a large extent to the majority of professional musicians in Switzerland, most of whom earn their living by teaching and also give concerts. The association offers them a professional network and services, it is not an educational institution and does not unite educational institutions.

Although we could not understand this decision, we had to accept it.

This makes membership recruitment and the SMPV's presence in the music education landscape all the more important this year. It is important to us to present the SMPV as an energetic association that continues to develop in terms of content and is a reliable partner.

In the area of further training, the well-attended courses in Alexander Technique for musicians will continue this year, and there will also be a repeat of the "Fully motivated" workshop.

A course will also be devoted to the important and complex topic of pension funds, and finally a workshop on accompanying pop pieces will be organized for classically trained music teachers. You can find further information on the further training courses, not least those of the sections, on our website.

At the end of the year, we launched a completely redesigned website with a new and fresh design that offers many interaction options, gives the sections more design options and, among other things, offers a greatly expanded calendar of events. Visit our new website and see for yourself!

Our teaching platform was also relaunched under the new domain "mein-musikunterricht.ch". The new site has a clearer layout and enhanced functions. Search engine optimization was also improved, for which the Assembly of Delegates in March 2021 had allocated corresponding funds.

The continuation of the "Structures and Communication" working group, which was set up by the 2019 Delegates' Assembly, was confirmed by the last Presidial Conference, but now that the restructuring - which will make the association more flexible and faster - has been completed, it has been renamed the "Communication" working group and will meet again at the beginning of this year. It will deal with important topics such as the focus on "member recruitment", the positioning of the SMPV in the music education landscape as well as services, internal and external communication and trade union orientation.

The "Verom" compensation fund co-founded by our association, the gardeners' compensation fund and the carpenters' compensation fund, which have been united for several years, merged at the beginning of the year to form the new "Forte" compensation fund. This should save resources and further reduce administrative costs for the benefit of insured persons. We wish the new compensation fund every success!

A lot is therefore changing at the SMPV. We will continue to pursue these developments with prudence and perseverance. Likewise, overcoming the Covid crisis will require our full vigilance and flexibility in the new year. We hope that you too will tackle things with courage and determination despite the adverse circumstances and wish you many enriching musical experiences in the new year.

Annette Dannecker, Paola De Luca - Mesdames et Messieurs, chères et chers collègues,

We wish you all the best for the new year! The past year has demanded a great deal of flexibility: we hope that the new year will be a little calmer and more predictable and that we will soon be able to exercise our profession with complete freedom, to teach and to play freely!

Our request for subsidies from the Federal Office of Culture was rejected in the spring of last year. With these subsidies, we wanted to promote professionalization and better represent our members. The request was rejected because the association was almost exclusively associated with music education by the OFSP. It was not noted that the group of our members largely corresponded to the majority of professional musicians in Switzerland, most of whom earn their living as teachers and also give concerts. The association offers them a professional network and services, but it is not a training institution and does not bring together any more training institutions.

We did not understand this decision, but we had to accept it.

This year, the publicity of our members and the presence of the SSPM in the world of music education will be even more important. We would like to present the SSPM as a strong association, whose content is evolving and which is a reliable partner.

In the field of continuing education, the Alexander technique courses for musicians will be continued this year, as well as a repeat of the "Voll motiviert" workshop.

A course will also be dedicated to the important and complex topic of retirement pensions and a workshop for classical music teachers to accompany the pop pieces will be organized soon. You will find more information about the trainings, especially those of the sections, on our website.

At the end of the year, we have launched a completely revamped website with a new design and reduced costs, offering numerous possibilities for interaction, more design options for sections and a very up-to-date calendar of events. Rendez-vous on our new page and judge for yourself!

De même, nous avons relancé notre plateforme de l'enseignement privé sous le nouveau domaine " mein-musikunterricht.ch " (leçonsdemusique.ch). The new site offers a clearer presentation and more detailed functions. In addition, the optimization of the research engines has been improved, to which the Assembly of Delegates of March 2021 allocated resources.

The continuation of the "Structures and Communication" working group, created by the Assembly of Delegates in 2019, was confirmed by the last Presidential Conference, but now that the restructurings have been completed - making the association more flexible and faster - this working group has been renamed "Communication" and will reconvene at the beginning of the year. It deals with important issues such as the priority "Publicity of the members", the positioning of the SSPM in the music education landscape, the services, internal and external communication and syndical orientation.

The "Verom" pension fund, created jointly by our association, the "Caisse de pension des jardiniers" and the "Caisse de pension des menuisiers", which have been united for a few years in a staff union, merged at the beginning of the year to form the new "Forte" pension fund. The aim is to optimize resources for the benefit of the insured and to further reduce administrative costs. We wish the new Compensation Fund every success!

There have therefore been many changes at the SSPM. We will continue to pursue these developments with prudence and precision. And once again, the management of the Covid crisis will require the utmost vigilance and flexibility. Despite the difficult conditions, we hope you will face the challenges with courage and wish you many enriching musical experiences for the new year.

Annette Dannecker, Paola De Luca - Gentili signore ed egregi signori, care colleghe e cari colleghi,

We wish you all the best for the new year! The past year has given us a lot of freedom; we are looking forward to the new year and hope that it will be a little more peaceful and predictable and that we will be able to practice our profession, teach and sing freely!

Our request for subsidies from the Federal Office of Culture was received last spring. With these convictions, we wanted to promote professionalization and better represent our members. The request has been honored because the association has been almost exclusively associated with musical education by the UFSP. It has not been noted that our membership corresponds in large part to the majority of professional musicians in Switzerland, most of whom are happy to sing and perform concerts. L'associazione offers them a rete professionale e servizi, non è un ente di formazione, né riunisce enti di formazione.

Non siamo riusciti a capire questa decisione, ma dobbiamo accettarla.

This year, the publicity of the members and the presence of the SSPM in the panorama of musical education will become even more important. I would like to present the SSPM as a strong association whose content is evolving and which is an affidable partner.

Nell'ambito della formazione continua, anche quest'anno proseguiranno i corsi di tecnica di Alexander per musicisti, così come una replica del workshop "Voll motiviert".

In addition, a course will be dedicated to the important and complex topic of retirement funds and a workshop will be organized for classical music teachers to accompany pop bands. Troverete maggiori informazioni sulla formazione continua, in particolare quella delle sezioni, sul nostro sito.

Alla finale dell'anno, abbiamo lanciato un sito web completamente rinnovato con un design nuovo e fresco, molte possibilità di interazione, più possibilità di design per le sezioni e un calendario di eventi molto ampio. Andate a vedere nostra nuova pagina!

Allo stesso modo, abbiamo rilanciato la nostra piattaforma di formazione privata con il nuovo dominio "mein-musikunterricht.ch" (lezionidimusica.ch). La nuova pagina offre una presentazione più chiara e funzioni più estese. Inoltre, è stata migliorata l'ottimizzazione per i motori di ricerca, alla quale l'Assemblea dei Delegati nel marzo 2021 aveva stanziato risorse.

The "Structures and Communication" work group, created by the 2019 Assembly of Delegates, was convened at the last Conference of Presidents, but the changes - which will make the association more flexible and swift - were made to the "Communication" work group and will take place again at the beginning of the year. They will deal with important topics such as the priority "Publicity of the members", the position of the SSPM in the panorama of musical education, services, international and international communication and the orientation of the Church.

Il fondo pensione "Verom", costituito congiuntamente dalla nostra associazione, il fondo pensione giardinieri e il fondo pensione falegnami, da diversi anni riuniti in un sindacato del personale, sono fusi ad inizio anno per formare il nuovo fondo pensione "Forte". The objective is to preserve the risks to the benefit of the insured and to further reduce administrative costs. Auguriamo ogni successo alla nuova cassa di compensazione!

Quindi ci sono molti cambiamenti nella SSPM. We will continue to pursue these developments with caution and tenacity. In the same way, the management of the Covid crisis requires, once again this year, every vigilance and flexibility. We wish you, despite the difficult circumstances, to face the crisis with courage and we hope you will have many musical experiences in the new year.

Question from an SMPV member: My music school has started offering adult lessons. It has sent notice of termination to all teachers and asked them to sign a new contract in which the teacher is no longer permitted to give private music lessons in the music school's catchment area. Exceptionally, this ban on competition will be lifted if the music teacher notifies the music school of the students concerned and obtains permission.

Question from another SMPV member: A music teacher resigned from a music school and received a letter from the principal stating that her pupils were to remain at the music school. The music teacher had to confirm this with her signature and send the letter back to the head teacher.

Basic principles: During an ongoing employment relationship, the employee is subject to the duty of care and loyalty in application of Art. 321 a CO (Swiss Code of Obligations). In particular, it states that during the term of the employment relationship, the employee may not perform any work for a third party in return for remuneration if he thereby breaches his duty of loyalty, in particular if he competes with the employer. Competition is deemed to exist if equivalent services are offered that satisfy the same customer needs and concern an at least partially overlapping clientele. This applies in full to full-time employees. Part-time employees are often financially dependent on being able to pursue another activity. With the agreement of a part-time workload, the employer and employee therefore tacitly assume that the employee will pursue additional secondary activities, in particular in their traditional field of activity, and that the prohibition of competition is waived. However, this presumption of tacit approval by the employer only applies if there are no conflicts of interest between the various part-time jobs and the duty of loyalty under employment law is thereby upheld. In addition, the parties can expressly agree that competing part-time work is prohibited. Instead of a complete ban on other part-time work, regulations according to which competing other part-time jobs may only be carried out with the prior written consent of the employer are common in practice.

In principle, it is lawful for an employer to conclude contracts only on the condition that teachers do not engage in competing activities, whether privately or with other music schools. Music schools are also at liberty to issue a so-called notice of termination with a change of contract by giving formal and timely notice and requesting that a new contract with such a non-competition clause be concluded. Music schools are also not legally prohibited from introducing a notification and approval requirement for such competing activities instead of a complete ban. The music school's approach is therefore legally correct.

The following must be clarified for employees who receive such an offer from their employer:

-Objectively: Are these competing activities at all?

If only children/young people or only adults are taught at the music school, private lessons or lessons at another school are not in competition if the same groups of pupils are not addressed.

-Locally: Is the competing activity of a teacher even in the catchment area of the music school?

The teacher only competes with the music school if the same groups of pupils are addressed, i.e. the pupils taught by the teacher would have come to the music school without the teacher's activity. Therefore, the catchment area of the music school must be specifically limited in such regulations and a private activity must be carried out slightly outside of it.

-Content: Is the specific instrument or subject taught by the music teacher at the music school?

If a music teacher teaches other instruments or subjects privately than those offered at the music school, they are not competing with the school and can teach without further ado.

In any case, disregarding the contractual duty of loyalty, in particular the non-competition clause, is dangerous, as this has repeatedly led to dismissals without notice in court practice.

Basic principles: The statutory non-competition clause of Art. 321 a. CO ends with the termination of the employment relationship. This means that an employee can in principle take up new employment privately or with an employer in competition with the previous employer immediately after termination of the employment contract. It is irrelevant that the departing employee may take with him or her essential knowledge from his or her previous employment and now use it in the service of the new employer or for his or her own private gain.

This situation can only be prevented by the employer and employee agreeing a non-competition clause for the period after termination of the employment relationship (Art. 340 et seq. CO). However, such a non-competition clause is only binding within narrow limits. In particular, the employee must have been granted access to the clientele or to manufacturing and business secrets during the employment relationship and the use of this knowledge must be capable of causing significant damage to the employer. In addition, a post-contractual non-competition clause must be agreed in writing, otherwise it is invalid. Verbal agreements or agreements by email are not sufficient. Furthermore, the non-competition clause must be reasonably limited in terms of place, time and subject matter and may only exceed three years in very special circumstances. Excessive non-competition clauses cannot be enforced in court, but will be restricted or revoked accordingly by the judge. The following therefore applies to music teachers:

- A post-contractual non-competition clause does not apply automatically.

- After termination of the employment relationship, the music teacher is free to decide whether he/she wishes to work at other music schools and/or as a private teacher.

- There is no obligation to conclude a non-competition clause.

- A non-competition clause is only valid in writing, i.e. signed by hand or with a certified signature.

- A non-competition clause must be clearly and strictly limited in terms of location, valid for less than 3 years and limited only to the activity carried out at the music school.

Even if all these requirements are met when agreeing a non-competition clause, the employee has a good chance that a post-contractual non-competition clause will be deemed invalid by a court. This is for the following reasons:

The non-competition clause is only binding if the employment relationship gives the employee insight into the clientele or into manufacturing and business secrets and the use of this knowledge could significantly harm the employer (Art. 340 para. 2 CO). According to established doctrine and case law, there is no room for a non-competition clause if the relationship with customers is primarily based on the employee's special skills, on his personal skills and if the relationship between him and the customers is primarily of a personal nature. In this case, the customers do not follow the employee because of the knowledge acquired from the employer, but because of the employee's special personal qualities and ability. In this case, the employee does not use skills acquired from the employer post-contractually, but rather his personal character traits, the utilization of which cannot be prohibited by a non-competition clause. This has been affirmed in court practice, for example, for gymnastics and dance teachers, a ladies' hairdresser, a riding instructor and, in the canton of Geneva, for a piano teacher. In all these professions, the performance and success of the employee does not depend primarily on the knowledge and services offered by the employer, but on personal characteristics. These alone are decisive for the possible change of clientele, and the more creatively and freely the employee can act, the more likely this is to be assumed (judgment of the Zurich High Court of 4.3.2008, BGE 130III353 ff. and BGE 138III67 ff.). There is therefore a good chance that even a post-contractual non-competition clause that appears to be valid would not be protected by a court on this basis and that the employee can work freely or in competition with the former employer after termination of the employment contract.

The non-competition clause lapses if the employee can prove one of the following facts:

- If the employer has no significant interest in maintaining it (it ceases operations or no longer offers the relevant subject).

- If the employer terminates the employment relationship without the employee having given him reasonable cause to do so.

- If the employee terminates the employment relationship for a justified reason for which the employer is responsible.

It is important to always clarify the validity of a non-competition clause, especially as there can be serious consequences if a valid non-competition clause is breached: On the one hand, the employer can demand the cessation of the competing activity, on the other hand compensation for damages (e.g. loss of profits) and, if agreed, contractual penalties.

The music teacher does not have to sign such a letter from the head teacher. Without this signature, no post-contractual non-competition clause applies (unless such a clause has already been concluded in the employment contract or otherwise). The music teacher can therefore take over the pupils they have brought to the music school after the end of the employment relationship if they wish. However, even if a written non-competition clause had been agreed beforehand or in response to this letter, the music teacher would have a good chance of it being declared invalid by a court for the reasons mentioned above. It is therefore worth clarifying the situation precisely in these cases and not allowing yourself to be restricted in the organization of your post-contractual professional life. It is important that the music teacher informs the head teacher that a post-contractual non-competition clause for music teachers is unlikely to be legally enforceable. There is no supreme court ruling on this, only cantonal rulings exist. This means that ultimately a certain residual risk cannot be ruled out before a federal court ruling is available. However, it is worth defending yourself, both against the signature and against the enforcement of such a non-competition clause.

Lucas Bennett - With "Stories for Ruth", Urs Frauchiger, who celebrated his 85th birthday on September 17, presents nine profound and deeply personal essays.

Three of the texts explicitly focus on musical themes, although music is also widely present in the other texts. At the beginning there is an essay on Mozart's "Magic Flute" and the difficulties of interpreting it, especially with regard to the relationship between libretto and music - which is not sparing in its criticism of so-called director's theater. Frauchiger contrasts the trivialization of the material that was sometimes experienced later with his first performance as a child. This combination of biography and later reflection is characteristic of the entire book, which can therefore also (but not only) be understood as an inner biography in snapshots.

The portrait of the legendary cellist Pablo Casals (1876-1973) is magnificent. Looking back on his encounters with Casals, Frauchiger succeeds here in making the special quality of this towering figure, which can only be experienced by those born later through recordings, imaginable and tangible - even for non-cellists.

The following chapter, dedicated to the Portuguese cellist Guilhermina Suggia (1885-1950), is no less fascinating. Frauchiger meticulously traces the life of the artist, who is little known today, and the scarce recordings available. Not only is the biography of Casal, with whom she was closely associated, given a valuable addition, but the better-known "master story" is accompanied by a lesser-known narrative: That, too, is history.

The references to the life and work of the writer and journalist Joseph Victor Widmann (1842-1911) are also a (re)discovery. His quotes and positions are finely woven into the text and paint a picture of an important thinker and man of letters who was often underestimated by his contemporaries (and posterity).

There is much more that could be mentioned, but two particularly impressive moments should be mentioned here: a walk to the Bern Rose Garden, which is closed due to the coronavirus, which nevertheless opens up diverse and deep insights, and a fabulously described extended hike by the author with his son through Tuscany, which opens up to the reader as a historical and cultural landscape at the same time.

The different levels of the essays - biographical, artistic, literary - merge seamlessly, are mutually dependent and thus refuse a one-dimensional, linear reading. However, the author invites us to an interpretation by putting the concepts of "meaning" and the image of the "red thread" up for discussion. We would say that meaning appears everywhere in this book: as a context of the intellectual and artistic influences that have shaped a life. Countless red threads can be discovered and followed. An immensely enriching and moving journey.

"Stories for Ruth" will be published on November 2.

Urs Frauchiger: Stories for Ruth. Essays. Zytglogge, 140 pages.