The striving for common understanding — for a common language, in a figurative sense —, the underscoring of that which unites us, has always been a necessity. This year we have therefore chosen the following guiding principle: Music is the universal language of mankind, a quote from Henry Wandsworth Longfellow’s sketches from his European travelogue, Outre-Mer: a pilgrimage beyond the sea.

For him, the singing of folk songs was an expression of the common heritage of different peoples and the universal love of poetry. From the peasant in the south, the Spanish muleteer, the Sicilian vintager, the fisherman of Naples, the gondolier of Venice, via the goatherd of Switzerland and the Tyrol, to the Scottish highlander. Music is the universal language of mankind — poetry its universal pastime and delight.

Several events in 2016/17 are dedicated to this pastime and delight: the Christmas concert with French noëls (Do-Re-Mi Voice Studio Telfs, Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien), New Year’s Eve with texts from Shakespeare among others — but also a very special form of international musical humour at the turn of the year. The art songs of Schumann and Brahms also gain their romantic charm in part through the use of folk music.

One foundation of artistic engagement is interpretation. Both in individual concerts as well as in the form of the salon, music+ enables listeners to partake in an intensive contemplation of works,epochs and ideas, together with the most diverse group of musicians. As well as the concert Universum Schubert (Ingrid Marsoner, Christoph Berner, Peter Waldner), there are two evenings with world-renowned composer Dieter Schnebel and a salon and the masterclass course with Werner Güra and Christoph Berner.

Supporting young people has been one of our pillars since the beginning; today it is more important than ever. Zukunft.Musik gives artists still in training or at the beginning of their career a professional podium away from the stars and starlets pumped up by the media industry.

This year musik+ dedicates several evenings to music which unfortunately is rarely heard and is unique in its depth and intensity. These include the evenings with chamber music by Max Reger, Telemann’s St Mark Passion (1759) and Alessandro Scarlatti’s St John Passion (ca. 1700).

With the Language of Music we would like to initiate a Dialogue of Souls between music, musicians and the public. In the concert by Jordi Savall, origin and culture couldn’t be more different and despite – or perhaps because – of this, it is possible to use the power of music to rebuild the intellectual and spiritual bridges which have been destroyed by so many centuries of tragedies, injustice and fanaticism.

We are looking forward to wonderful universal moments with you
Hannah Crepaz and team