If someone invited you to “The Bash,” what would come to mind? Perhaps a grungy festival in a field, a basement full of metal-heads, or another franchise cricket league. Whatever you expected, a double-bill of concerts at a sophisticated hall in the middle of Switzerland likely wouldn’t top the list. As the artistic director of Andermatt Music and conductor of the Swiss Orchestra, Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer will oversee events on 25th and 26th October. Even she isn’t quite sure what to expect—and that’s just how she likes it.
An Unconventional Musical Collaboration
“It will be a laboratory,” Wüstendörfer explains. Joining her and the Swiss Orchestra on the Andermatt Concert Hall stage will be singer Stephan Eicher and writer Martin Suter, both Swiss cultural icons. They’ll also be accompanied by pianist Reyn Ouwehand and the Kruger Brothers, a banjo duo who found fame on the American bluegrass scene after leaving their Swiss village. So when Wüstendörfer promises “new music which is outside the box,” The Bash should certainly fulfill that claim.
A previous one-off collaboration between Eicher and the Swiss Orchestra was so successful that they were invited to tour it. But Wüstendörfer aims to bridge artistic worlds and diverse audiences, avoiding another standard crossover project. “Rock and pop bands being accompanied by a symphony orchestra isn’t really new. In Andermatt, we want The Bash to create something new across genres. We do too much of our thinking in boxes. There is classical, there is folk, there is rock. If you like one, you cannot like the other. But in the end, we all tell stories and talk about emotions. We are all trying to touch an audience.”
Challenging Preconceptions and Establishing the Swiss Orchestra
Wüstendörfer enjoys challenging preconceptions. She established the Swiss Orchestra in 2018, the only ensemble to tour throughout a culturally divided country, split between French, German, and Italian-speaking regions. Noticing a lack of Swiss Classical-Romantic period music being performed abroad, Wüstendörfer wanted to uncover what had been overlooked. “There is Arthur Honegger, Frank Martin, Heinz Holliger, but many orchestras are hesitant to play pieces from the 20th century. I began to wonder: is there no significant Swiss music from the Classical-Romantic period, or has no one taken the trouble to find it? I concluded it was the latter.”
The Swiss Orchestra’s Repertoire and Performances
The Swiss Orchestra transcends this with its touring repertoire and productions of long-19th-century Swiss compositions alongside classical core works. In May and June, they featured Masato Suzuki as soloist in a harpsichord concerto by Marguerite Roesgen-Champion, a Geneva contemporary of Wanda Landowska, playing an overture by Basel-born August Walter and Brahms’ Second Symphony. On 28th September, the orchestra will launch its fifth season with Hans Huber’s First Symphony and Rachmaninov’s Second Piano Concerto, challenging critics’ views on Swiss music—showcasing it as every bit as important as composers like Rachmaninov.
“Swiss Dreams”: Reviving Forgotten Composers
“Swiss Dreams,” a 2-CD set from the Prospero label, highlights the Swiss Orchestra’s journey. It features recordings of pieces by Édouard Du Puy, Hermann Suter, and Franz Xaver Schnyder von Wartensee. Wüstendörfer attributes the historical neglect of Swiss composers to the lack of royal courts that funded work in countries like Germany and Austria. Founding the Swiss Orchestra has enabled her to breathe life into forgotten composers from Swiss music’s archives.
Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer’s Musical Journey
Wüstendörfer’s passion for orchestral sounds began in her youth, where each instrument independently produced beautiful tones but combined to create unmatched brilliance. Initially trained as a violinist, she soon pursued conducting at Basel Conservatoire, learning from legends like Claudio Abbado and Sir Roger Norrington. She gained valuable experience learning to shape sounds and challenge scores, noticing that competition victories neither secured lasting success nor limited future progress.
Beyond the Swiss Orchestra: Other Endeavors
Outside of the Swiss Orchestra, Wüstendörfer recently led a successful production of Strauss’s Salome at Metz Opera. Her analysis on Mahler’s Fourth Symphony and the organizational model inspired by the Mahler Chamber Orchestra informs her approach to Andermatt’s music scene.
Andermatt: A Cultural Hub in Switzerland
Andermatt, situated on the border between German and Italian-speaking regions of Switzerland, is ideal as a cultural hub. The town’s concert hall has become a center for diverse musical activities beyond symphony concerts. Besides The Bash, it hosted an annual Goethe celebration in August and a varied musical lineup.
Yearlong Programming and the “Local Roots” Series
The yearlong programming in Andermatt builds around three “pillars”: performances by the Swiss Orchestra, guest appearances from other Swiss ensembles such as the Zurich Chamber Orchestra, and international acts like pianist Fazıl Say and the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra. The “Local Roots” series introduces contemporary classical pieces with roots in Swiss folk heritage. Through initiatives such as The Bash, reviving pieces like Huber’s symphonies, and promoting talented folk ensembles, Wüstendörfer aims to unite and present Swiss musicians to the wider world.
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