Kurkonzerte St. Moritz

Dear Audiences, near and far,

The three of us, Raimund Wiederkehr, Andres Joho and Samuel Zünd, musicians and curators of the St. Moritz Retreat Concerts, are delighted to share with you the new programme for this year’s series of concerts! With many years’ experience in the classical, theatrical and entertainment worlds as pianists, conductors, singers and bandleaders, we are very conscious of the time-honoured tradition of the St. Moritz retreat salon concerts. As such, we plan to maintain the proven, unmistakable and evergreen style of the retreat and salon orchestras. However, we will be introducing a few fresh notes and humour to the concert series, enriching even further this cultural offering that delights guests and locals alike throughout each summer season. All of the concerts will be presented by an entertaining host and are sure to appeal to all generations.

The ambience of the new venue is a perfect match for the traditional salon orchestra concerts: the spacious, newly renovated belle époque hall (Vic’s Bar) in the Hotel Reine Victoria adds to the atmosphere of prestige and enjoyment.

You can look forward to arrangements of classical works and operas, operetta melodies and Viennese music along with songs from the Roaring Twenties, cabaret music, swing, canzoni and folk music and standards from the Great American Songbook.

In addition, repeated events called “breakouts” are planned; these are special concerts in special locations, often combined with scenic elements:

● “Valkyries In The Trees” – The first act of Richard Wagner’s Valkyrie / Die Walküre opera will be performed by three singers, three musicians and a sword Schwert. The backdrop for this epic music drama is the forest behind the Eglise au Bois – a unique performance blending music and nature that will thrill not just Wagner fans!

● “Peter, the Wolf and Other Animals” will play for the youngest listeners in the beautiful theatre of the Hotel Reine Victoria.

● You will also be able to enjoy “Operettas in 20 Minutes” and the magnificent Children’s Operas byJörg Schneider und Emil Moser, written for the Zürich Opera.

We are looking forward to spending an exhilarating musical summer with you!

Andres Joho

Raimund Wiederkehr

Samuel Zünd

Raimund Wiederkehr

The Zurich-based singer, pianist, conductor and composer cultivates music on and in front of the stage, but also in churches and hotel lobbies. He has travelled with his salon orchestra fromSt. Moritz to Vienna, the Venice Biennale and Hong Kong. He is also an operetta performer throughout Switzerland, from the Zurich Opera House to the Biel-Solothurn Theatre. His compositions have been premiered in Zurich, Vienna and London. He works as a cantor and director of the Zurich Girls' Choir and as a music teacher at a Zurich grammar school.

Andres Joho

After training in Zurich, he worked as a conductor and Kapellmeister at the Basel, Biel-Solothurn and Bern theatres as well as in Germany (Berlin) and Austria (Klagenfurt), worked for many years with Heinz Spoerli as conductor of the Basel Ballet, has been a freelance musician in various formations and countless projects since 2015, president of the Seetalclassics concert series and in many stage projects as a musician and pianist.

Samuel Zünd

The baritone harmonises classical oratorios and swinging extravagance. As a bandleader, arranger, pianist and singer, he is committed to the rediscovery of nostalgic evergreens, old Swiss hits and swing hits with his vocal groups The Sam Singers and Swing4you, and has performed with Hazy Osterwald, Udo Jürgens and Pepe Lienhard, among others. As a chansonnier and entertainer, he has been on stage for many years with a variety of programmes.