Swiss Alps Are Alive with the Sound of Music This Summer at The Alpina Gstaad

From July 17 through September 6, some 70 concerts of Beethoven, Mozart, Schubert and Tchaikovsky will be performed in the Festival Tent and in several 13th and 14th century churches in the Sannenland. The Alpina Gstaad is offering a "Music in Motion" package, which includes tickets to the performances.

When the "violinist of the century" moved to Gstaad in the late 1950s, he was struck by the magnificent views of the towering Alps, the beauty of the Saanenland and by the mix of French, Italian and German cultures, just as visitors to the area are today. Then Tourism Director Paul Valentin asked Yehudi Menuhin if he would enhance the summer season with some concerts. The violinist agreed and the Menuhin Festival Gstaad debuted in 1957.

One of the world's most celebrated pianists, Christian Zacharias will kick off the festival on June 17 with a concert of sonatas by Mozart and Schubert. Two renowned sopranos, Simone Kermes and Vasselina Kasarova will recreate the rivalry between Cuzzoni and Bordoni in "Two Divas, Two Rivals" on July 18. For a change of place, pop star Bobby McFerrin who also happens to conduct several of the world's leading orchestras, will perform on July 19.

Other highlights from this year's program are:

• August 2 – Pianist Roman Rabinovich winner of the 2008 Arthur Rubinstein Piano Master Competition will play Couperin, Brahms and Ravel

• August 6 – Called "one of the great pianists of the future," Khatia Buniatishvili will perform a waltz recital

• August 7 – Violinist Valeriy Skolov will perform Beethoven sonatas with Eugene Izotov on piano

• August 10 – Christophe Coin on cello and Sergio Ciomei on harpsichord playing Viola da Gumba by Bach

• August 14 – Violinist Vlad Stanceleasa and conductor of the Gstaad Festival Orchestra playing de Falla, Sibelius and Stravinsky

• August 16 – Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream with Enoch Zu Guttenberg conducting the Orchestra of Klangverwaltung and Klaus Maria Brandauer narrating

• August 21 – For the Glacier Concert, Nicholas Altstaedt, cellist and "Credit Suisse Young Artists of 2010," will perform Bach and Bartok

• August 22 – "Opera Gala - Great Voices" unites New York, Vienna and La Scala with Diana Damrau, Joseph Calleja, Thomas Hampson singing Donizetti, Rossini and Verdi accompanied by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Antonio Pappano

• August 30 – "Magic Northern Lights" is a rare opportunity to hear two romantic concertos performed by two outstanding international stars: Khatia Buniatishvili performing Edvard Grieg, and Vilde Frang performing Max Bruch and the only concert this year with the Gstaad Festival Orchestra under the direction of Neeme Järvi

• September 3 – "Experencia Flamenco" with Vital Julian Frey on harpsichord and Alicia Lopez dancing flamenco

• September 5 Carmen by George Bizet sung by tenor Gaston Rivera and mezzo-soprano Vesselina Kasarova accompanied by the Fribourg Symphony Orchestra

The newest luxury hotel to open in Gstaad in 100 years, the 56-room Alpina Gstaad has been winning awards and accolades since it opened in December 2012. A contemporary interpretation of traditional Swiss architecture, the hotel's exterior is covered in rich brown Ringgenberg stone from local quarries and hundred-year-old fir wood, gathered from old Alpine farmhouses, lines the interior of the property.

The Alpina Gstaad's "Music in Motion" package includes accommodations in a Deluxe Room with daily breakfast and an Alpina Culinary Credit of 100 CHF per person per day, one ticket to a Menuhin Festival concert, transfers to and from the concert and a Gstaad easyaccess card. Rates for the two-night package start at CHF 1,790 for two persons (or approximately US$2,005). The rate for single occupancy is CHF 1,295 (or approximately US $ 1,450). Guests may request additional tickets to the Menuhin Festival.

For more information about the "Music in Motion" package, please email info@thealpinagstaad.ch, call O11-41-33-888-9888 or visit https://www.thealpinagstaad.ch/ and
https://www.menuhinfestivalgstaad.ch/site/en/.