For centuries, yodeling was used as a method of long-distance communication between mountain dwellers. Farmers once yodeled to call lost animals who recognized their voices. And it was once believed that yodeling had the power to drive away demons.
For the third time, Salt Lake City will host the 23rd Pacific Coast Swiss Singing and Yodeling Festival, a four-day celebration of singing, dancing and eating, Thursday-Sunday, June 17-20.In conjunction with the event, next week has been declared Swiss Heritage Week by Gov. Mike Leavitt and Mayor Deedee Corradini.
The festival will gather more than 500 Swiss-American singers, yodelers, alphorn players, folk musicians and folk dancers to perform in concert Friday evening and participate in an all-day Swiss folk festival Saturday.
An alphorn, also known as an alpenhorn, is a curved, wooden, powerful-sounding horn, from five to 12-plus feet long, used by Alpine herdsmen for signaling. Herdsmen dating back to the Roman Empire would play them at night as a form of communication.
The Friday concert will feature guest soloists and performers from Switzerland, along with 11 Swiss choirs from the United States and Canada, all performing a variety of Swiss songs and yodels in four languages (Swiss-German, French, Italian and Romansch, recognized as the fourth official language in Switzerland). The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Abravanel Hall. Tickets are available through ArtTix at 355-2787.
Registration for the festival begins Thursday, June 17, at 10 a.m. in the DoubleTree Inn Hotel and continues for most of the day. Thursday evening, there will be an opening ceremony, dinner, live music and dancing until midnight. Breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets will also be provided throughout the day for all ticket holders. Registration for the four-day event is $185.
Saturday the festival moves to Midway, with performances and festival souvenir and vendor booths on display. Two sets of buses will leave Salt Lake's DoubleTree Inn that morning and return in the late afternoon for dinner and dancing.
Midway was chosen because it was settled by Swiss LDS settlers. The townhouse there is built in the traditional Swiss architecture, which also lends flavor to its setting. "The valley also bears an uncanny resemblance to a valley in Switzerland," according to Ruth Vorwaller, the 1999 festival president.
During the course of the day, there will be an Alpen Trek re-enactment, which is essentially a parade of cows decorated with flowers and people dressed in traditional Swiss costume. An Alpen Trek was when farmers in Switzerland would take their livestock to other pastures in the springtime, usually high in the mountains. It was there the animals would feed on mineral-rich meadows, herbs and flowers, which made for more flavorful cheeses and milk products.
Those wishing to attend the Midway festivities only may do so for $25 with lunch or $7 without. The lunch will consist of European sausage and bread, and an array of salads and drinks. Reservations are required.
On Sunday, the last day of the festival, the Rymann Trio and alphorn virtuoso Hans Friederich will perform with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at 9:30 a.m. in the Tabernacle on Temple Square.
The choir will perform a rendition of the hymn "How Gentle God's Command," with Hans Friederich playing a death cant, or counter melody, to each verse on his alphorn. The hymn was orignally composed in the 18th century by Hans Georg Naegeli, who is regarded as the father of choral singing. (Doors at the Tabernacle close at 9:15 a.m., so plan to arrive early.)
A closing ceremony and banquet will be held in the DoubleTree's Grand Ballroom at noon.
Flavio Cotti, Swiss federal counselor of foreign affairs, writes, "Alpine festivals are part of the cultural heritages of the peoples of the Alps -- a tradition that dates long before the first Swiss cantons formed the alliance that was to become the foundation stone of modern Switzerland.
"They are not elaborate occasions. Alpenhorns, singers and yodelers, together with the joy of meeting with friends is all that is required -- like at any traditional folk music event. The rest is left to the imaginations, spirits and spontaneity of the participants.
"Here in Utah, we find the same wide open spaces and spectacular mountain scenery that gives yodelers and alpenhorn players the inspiration to perform their art. It is in such settings as this that the art finds its full expression and meaning."
Reservations for Song & Folkfest tickets can be made by calling 277-0692, 467-8684 or 485-0876.