In 2005, Princess Caroline Murat founded the Gstaad New Year Music Festival in the picturesque town of Gstaad, in the Swiss canton of Bern. For years, she worked closely with Martin Engstroem at the Verbier Festival, co-founded the Verbier Academy, and, in 2001, the Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad. Today, the festival enjoys the high patronage of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco and, throughout its history, has hosted over 300 concerts and events featuring more than 1,000 artists. To mark the festival’s twentieth anniversary, Marina Viotti gave a recital at the Church of Saint Nicholas in Rougemont, an 11th-century architectural gem that enveloped the audience in its solemnity and beauty.
The Franco-Swiss mezzo-soprano proved to be an artistic phenomenon: a creator in the truest sense. Titled About Last Night, the recital explored love and the life of the contemporary woman. In front of an enraptured audience, an atmosphere was created that evoked Le Chat Noir in late 19th-century Paris. Yet Viotti’s style transcends eras, genres, and borders. The program ranged from the jazz standard Cry Me a River by Arthur Hamilton to Toothbrush Time, from William Bolcom’s Cabaret Songs cycle. She shone particularly in the chanson française repertoire, with pieces such as Je te veux by Erik Satie and Le Paon by Maurice Ravel, where she revealed her most intimate side with delicacy and subtlety.
The encore provided an unforgettable moment. Rossini, one of the composers who has guided her career, was represented by the aria from La Cenerentola, «Non più mesta», and the duet «Oh, che muso» from L’italiana in Algeri, performed alongside the young bass-baritone Mark Kurmanbayev. With his velvety voice, Kurmanbayev demonstrated extraordinary expressive talent, establishing himself as a rising artist to watch. He is currently a member of the Jeune Ensemble of the Grand Théâtre de Genève.
Viotti’s eclecticism is reflected not only in the repertoire she chose—which spanned from Mozart to Jacques Brel—but also in the quality of the ensemble she brought together. Jazz bassist Antoine Brochot provided solidity and depth, while Didier Puntos masterfully accompanied the voices with a rich, legato piano sound, also standing out in his solo rendition of Isaac Albéniz’s «Tango». Gerry López, the renowned jazz saxophonist, excelled with a memorable solo of the bolero «Bésame mucho» by Consuelo Velázquez, producing a full, flexible, and highly expressive sound. It is also worth mentioning the CD he recorded with Viotti in 2023, titled Porque existe otro querer.
The festival undoubtedly deserves congratulations for twenty years of history and success. May it continue to shine, as it will until the end of the season on January 10, with performances of Mozart’s Piano Concertos No. 22 and No. 23—a fitting finale to this musical celebration.
