Seeing Kaufmann sing in Gstaad

Sometimes life delivers the unexpected. I went to Switzerland to hear Jonas Kaufmann sing and booked a second concert as an afterthought which turned out to be the one I enjoyed most.

Gstaad festival 

It was a complex mix of factors that made the difference, not the performers who were both exceptional. I went to Gstaad still tired  from the previous evening's concert and that may have contributed to my lack of enthusiasm for the place. Also I had loved the tiny church where the Sebastian Knauer piano concert was held. It had a charm which the huge festival tent at Gstaad lacked.

Kaufmann's marvellous voice is worth travelling for. It is extraordinary to hear a voice the fills such a large space, even when he sings softly.  However next time I will get a ticket to see him perform in an opera instead of a concert. I want to be immersed in the story when I hear the aria.

In the course of the evening I got to know one of Kaufmann's 'groupies', a Zurich woman who goes to see Kaufman sing wherever he is.  She told me that she had recently tried booking to hear him in Paris in June 2016 and had found the tickets were already sold out. I will have to plan well ahead if I want to hear him in an opera.

My new acquaintance offered to make a copy of the Fidelio Kaufmann sang in Salzberg last week which was broadcast and which she had taped. I missed it because I was in the air on the way here, so I accepted her offer with pleasure.

Kaufmann video you may not have seen!

Zweisimmen to Gstaad by rail

 Zweisimmen is half an hour by rail from Gstaad and I took the train there yesterday. It is a very curvy scenic journey up and over the hill.

Salzburg Elevation  = 424 m (1,391 ft)
Bern Elevation  = 542 m (1,778 ft)
Zweisimmen Elevation =  947 m (3,107 ft)
Gstaad Elevation = 1,050 metres (3,445 feet)

Zweisimmen to Gstaad by rail.

Now I have finally visited Gstaad I realise how lucky I was deciding to stay in Zweisimmen instead of Gstaad. Firstly that extra train change after a long haul flight would have been one too many. I would not have enjoyed the scenic journey.  But secondly,  Gstaad is like a large upmarket mall and I found it similarly sterile. It might be upmarket but it is not relaxing ( well perhaps it is for people who love shopping.)

Pretty Gstaad

Visitors were a mixture of Swiss in hiking gear and internationals/locals shopping in the swanky shops. Middle Eastern folk were noticable by their presence, carrying large shopping bags.

Art ...

Art too

I visited two art galleries which were full of the type of art made in workshops according to an artist's directions.

In short, I found Gstaad tiring and alienating. Good for a concert perhaps, but not for a holiday.

Gstaad - playground of the 1%

I  have belatedly read the wikipedia entry for Gstaad:

"Gstaad... is a bilingual village in the German-speaking section of the Canton of Bern in southwestern Switzerland... and is known as a major ski resort and a popular destination amongst the high society and the international jet set."

So no wonder the prices are exorbitant and they have to bus people in for larger concerts.

Gstaad promenade (from Wikipedia)

"Gstaad is home to one of the largest ski areas in the Alps (220 km (137 mi) of slopes). The middle of the village features a picturesque promenade bounded by numerous shops, restaurants, art galleries, and hotels. Designer labels including Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Chopard, Brunello Cucinelli, Prada, Moncler, Ralph Lauren, and Cartier all have stores in Gstaad, while many smaller boutiques stock labels such as Chloe, Dolce & Gabbana, Tod's, Burberry, Dior, Oscar de la Renta, and Marc Jacobs."

Funny isn't it that shopping takes pride of place in the list of attractions. I guess you come here to buy the things that mark you out as one of the 1%, otherwise who would know?

Art galleries are included in the list above so I plan to do a gallery-crawl before the Kuafmann concert.

Gstaad, home of the Menuhin Festival

Where do you go if you want to hear tenor Jonas Kaufmann sing and you find all his opera performances are long since sold out? Well, if it's August, you go to Switzerland, to a tiny place called Gstaad, high up in the mountains.  The road/rail ends at Gstaad - it is as far as you can go before the rock face to the south cuts you off. Over the mountain is Italy.

Switzerland: Zweisimmen (red arrow left) and
Gstaad (red arrow right) and lots of ski-lifts

Gstaad seems an unlikely choice for a famous-tenor concert, particularly when you find Kaufmann is singing in a tent (yes really!), but then you discover this concert is part of the Menuhin Music Festival and that Yehudi Menuhin lived in Gstaad and it no longer seems so outlandish.

Festival Tent in Gstaad

I discovered this concert a few months ago when there were still tickets available and here I am, jetlagged but ready to listen.

I am not in Gstaad yet actually but in nearby  Zweisimmen. A bed in Gstaad costs CHF300 (AUD$412) - way too expensive for artists, or many people really.  There is a piano recital (also part of the Menuhin Festival) in the Zweisimmen church the night before Kaufmann sings, so it seemed an ideal place to stay. I did check the train timetables and yes, there is a late train back to Zweisimmen! I have since discovered that a shuttle bus services operates from Bern and Lausanne for the major concerts so perhaps even the Swiss find accommodation prices in Gstaad a little overwhelming.