Is Switzerland Europe's sound art paradise?
From large-scale festivals to a favorable funding climate, Switzerland is currently making waves in the world of sound art. I travelled to Geneva (KorSonoR) and Sion (Biennale Son) last month.
A strong tradition in sound art
Neutral Switzerland has a strong tradition of visual and sound art. It is the birthplace of two important pioneers in the genre: Jean Tinguely (1925–1991) and Christian Marclay (born 1955). Both artists introduced sound to the world of museums and visual arts: Tinguely experimented with movement (and therefore sound) in sculpture, while Marclay cut up music, films and records into samples, which became the basis for ‘turntablism’.
Today, Switzerland is home to Zimoun, one of the world’s most famous and Instagram-worthy sound artists.
New festivals at unique venues
In addition to being a breeding ground for artists, Switzerland has recently seen the emergence of several large-scale festivals centred around sound art: These include Klang Moor Schopfe in the German-speaking region, Biennale Son in the beautiful Valais region, and KorSonoR in the impressive lake-city of Geneva.
All tree are non-traditional exhibitions with works spread over (heritage) sites in a city, village or rural area, open for the audience to explore. Klang Moor Schopfe, for instance, invites you to walk from one wooden barn to another in the Alpine meadows, each housing a site specific sound art installation.
A sound trail in the Alps
These new festivals join established initiatives such as the open-air museum Klangwelt Toggenburg, the Archipel Festival and Cave12, both in Geneva.
Klangwelt Toggenburg is particularly worth checking out: together with Klankenbos in Belgium, it is the largest collection of outdoor sound art in Europe. Located in the foothills of the Eastern Swiss Alps, the ‘Klangwelt’ (‘sound world’) offers a sound house, a sound blacksmith, a resonance centre and even a sound hiking trail with works by Marco Barotti, Mélia Roger or Peter Ablinger.
Why does sound art flourishes in Switzerland?
But why is it that sound art is doing so well in Switzerland? There are several possible reasons for this:
Switzerland has a robust system of public and private funding, including Pro Helvetia, world famous museums and wealthy private collectors.
Located on the crossroads of Europe, it offers easy access to the scenes of larger countries with the same language, such as Germany, France and Italy.
The unique geography of Switzerland, particularly the Alps, provides a rich context for artists to explore themes like climate change, silence and the open air.
Higher education institutions, such as the Bern Academy of the Arts (HKB) and EDHEA (in Valais) have dedicated sound art programs.
Between vineyards and mountain views
OK, I promised you a short report on my visit to Biennale Son and KorSonoR :-)
It wasn’t my first time visiting Biennale Son in Sion. Two years ago, I was there when the festival was organised for the first time in the beautiful Valais region. The surroundings alone are reason enough to travel to this place: castles and churches stand out against the backdrop of autumnal vineyards and dramatic mountain views. In this setting, Biennale Son displays an enormous amount of artworks in special locations in Sion, Martigny and throughout the region.
To be honest, there is far too much to see in a single day. I only had three hours, so I feel that I was only able to visit a fraction of it. One of the central locations is a huge historic hydroelectric power station (‘Centrale’). The eye-catcher here is a work by Philippe Quesne in which buffet pianos, some damaged, are stacked in a sculpture and emit acoustic and recorded sounds. The work has a very theatrical approach.
A recurring problem in exhibiting sound art is the overlapping of sound from works located in the same space. Biennale Son occasionally plays with this by contrasting different works with each other, but sometimes this means that fragile works such as Lara Dâmaso’s are overshadowed. Nevertheless, this is a beautiful piece in which a minimalist vocal composition is brought to life through parts of a drum kit.
After my visit to the Centrale, I walked all the way up the town of Sion to a former prison. There, a new video work by German artist Annika Kahrs was on display, combining classical composition with video art and aspects of sound art like no other.
From Marina Rosenfeld to Max Neuhaus
After a beautiful train journey past mountains and the enormous Lake Geneva, I arrived in Geneva, where the KorSonoR festival – organised by Arta Asperto – kicked off with a performance by the great Marina Rosenfeld. The American composer not only presented a new work for video and sound, but also performed on a “transacoustic” piano. This is a classic upright piano that can be used to play digital sounds, which in turn resonate through the piano’s sound box. Rosenfeld cleverly misleads us by playing with the expectations and cliches of a piano concert.
Another artist on the programme was James Webb (not the telescope!), a South African, Stockholm based conceptual artist who “asks personal questions to objects”. In this case: of a wooden Celtic statue and of Lac Leman. The ‘dead’ objects are brought to life by zooming in on their personal history and identity of the thing.
Did you know that Geneva is also home to a permanent sound installation by the late Max Neuhaus (1939–2009)? In 2002, the American sound pioneer created a very subtle piece for attentive passers-by in a public park, which can still be heard today. It has a similar approach to his iconic work Times Square.
