Magical Musical Moments Celebrating Connection
The dream team of Maurice Steger and Sebastian Wienand returns to Gstaad. Join Family Matters for an extraordinary concert program that celebrates the deep human, friendly, and familial bonds of the Baroque era in the here and now—a dazzling display of early music in the Swiss mountains.
A Deepening Love for the Gstaad Festival Family
It is a return that comes from the heart. For many years, the world-famous recorder player has been an integral part of the Menuhin Festival Gstaad’s extended family. This summer, the circle closes once again amid the inspiring mountain scenery of Gstaad. Together with his longtime musical partner, the virtuoso harpsichordist Sebastian Wienand, he will fill the beautiful Romanesque church in Rougemont with music. The audience can look forward to one of their legendary concerts—carried by sparkling wit, technical brilliance, and a palpable, pure joy of playing.
“Family Matters”—When Closeness Creates Masterpieces
Under the profound title “Family Matters,” Daniel Hope dedicates his first season as artistic director of the Menuhin Festival Gstaad, on the one hand, to Yehudi Menuhin and the many family matters, and on the other, to the congenial duo Steger & Wienand—exploring the invisible threads that make great art possible in the first place. The program paints a fascinating portrait of deep friendships and closely interwoven connections among the most famous composers of the Baroque era. It is precisely these intense encounters within the inner circle that have shaped some of the most beautiful and emotional chapters in the great book of music history.
Just how close these ties were is evident in many examples throughout the evening: For instance, Johann Sebastian Bach secured his coveted position as cantor at St. Thomas Church in Leipzig largely through the help of his close friend Georg Philipp Telemann. Telemann remained an important advisor to the Bach family until the end of his life and proudly took on the role of godfather to Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. A wonderful family secret still surrounds Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s Sonata in G minor: The latest findings in musicology show that the young Emanuel either composed the work entirely on his own or with the active support of his father, Johann Sebastian.
From Italy to Leipzig and London: A Web of Inspiration
This evening’s journey of friendships also takes us across the Alps. Even at a young age, Johann Sebastian Bach enthusiastically absorbed the Italian style. His original arrangement of Alessandro Marcello’s oboe concerto is a striking testament to this deep artistic admiration. Alessandro’s younger brother, Benedetto Marcello, in turn, devoted himself passionately to the ‘stile nobile’ and, although he modestly regarded himself as an amateur composer, created melodies of unforgettable, haunting beauty for the recorder.
The Sammartini brothers from northern Italy also made history. While Giovanni Battista innovatively paved the way for the emerging Classical period in his chamber music, his older brother Giuseppe was celebrated as the finest oboist in Europe. Through his close collaboration with George Frideric Handel in London, his love for the recorder ultimately deepened, and he gifted us with fantastic, high-energy music for this instrument.
Maurice Steger and Sebastian Wienand do not let these historical scores gather dust in a museum. They bring early music directly into the present with tremendous, colorful energy, making the historical connections tangible and audible in the here and now.
The Concert Program at a Glance
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): Sonata in E Major for Flute and B. c., BWV 1035
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681–1767): Sonatina in A Minor for Recorder and B. c., TWV 41:a4
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714–1788): Sonata in G minor for flute and obbligato harpsichord, H 542.5
Benedetto Marcello (1686–1739): Sonata in D minor for recorder and basso continuo, Op. 2 No. 2
Alessandro Marcello (1673–1747)/arr. J. S. Bach: Concerto in D minor for solo harpsichord, BWV 974
Benedetto Marcello (1686–1739): Sonata in D minor for recorder and basso continuo, Op. 2 No. 2
Giovanni Battista Sammartini (1701–1775): Harpsichord Sonata in C major
Giuseppe Sammartini (1693–1750): Sonata in G major for recorder and basso continuo, Op. 2 No. 2
