Swiss Music: Global & Folk (Sponsored article)

If you ask someone to think of Spanish music, Portuguese music or Balkan music, some distinct sounds will probably come into their mind. It might be a stereotype, but the rasp of a flamenco guitar, the keen of a fado voice or the punch of Serbian brass will probably be on the radar. Yet here is a country in the heart of Europe whose musical profile is much more of a secret, which is strange considering that Switzerland physically boasts the most dramatic landscape in Europe.

As an amazing new Spotify playlist – Swiss Music: Global & Folk – attests, Switzerland isn’t just spectacular geographically, but musically as well. It’s a 93-track voyage through some glorious landscapes, both real and imaginary and is surprisingly varied as Switzerland is home to many who’ve immigrated from elsewhere. Here, I offer a journey through my 12 favourite tracks from the extensive Spotify list.

Silberen are a quartet with some folk influences, including hackbrett (hammer dulcimer), which plays around the versatile vocals of Barbara Berger. ‘Gspili’ is a catchy song from Switzerland’s Bernese Oberland about two women after the same man. The Authentic Light Orchestra was created by Valeri Tolstov to explore his Armenian roots. The title of the track ‘Mountain Dance’ might imply the Alps, but the character of the music is distinctly Armenian and reminds us that the Caucasus mountains dominate the Armenian landscape.

The Spotify playlist features a surprising amount of Afrobeat and highlife. The Nigerian sound seems to have taken root everywhere, but it’s clearly thanks to some major West African names who are now based in Switzerland and have teamed up with local lovers of African music. That’s the case with Professor Wouassa in Lausanne. There’s no actual professor in the group, but they are a strong 11-piece band and ‘Bande de Kokos’ is a funky track with some punchy sax playing. The Nkonsonkonson Star Band, from Bern, is also a sax-heavy ten-piece outfit led by Ghana-born Tobias Kwabena Asuming. The track ‘Odo Wiase’ has a more highlife flavour.

Cuban singer and violinist Yilian Cañizares has a successful international career. We’ve featured her in Songlines and I met her at the Udaipur World Music Festival in India of all places. I love the laid-back vibe and whispered vocals of her ‘Habañera’. By contrast are the playful synth lines of TootArd, the Syrian duo of Hasan and Rami Nakhleh from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. ‘Moonlight’ is lovely retro-styled Arabic synthesised pop, romantic and fun.

Time to get back to some of the locals. I love Töbi Tobler & Patrick Sommer for the textures they bring out of their combination of dulcimer and double bass. The hackbrett is a local folk instrument, but in ‘Kamel Trip’ it sounds contemporary and refreshing, full of strange and unusual string sounds and percussive effects. Similarly, Ambäck are a contemporary folk trio of violin (Andreas Gabriel), button accordion (Markus Flückiger) and double bass (Pirmin Huber). Their music shows there need be nothing old fashioned about the sounds of Swiss folk.

Switzerland is notable for having four recognised languages, German, French, Italian and Romansh. It’s the last, of course that is least-known and spoken by a minority in the eastern canton of Graubünden. I was keen to include one of the most popular singers in the language, Pascal Gamboni. ‘Quei Vala Ben Biè’ means ‘It’s Worth Quite a Lot,’ and it certainly is. Ala Fekra are a Swiss-Egyptian group created by accordionist Patricia Draeger. The track ‘Longa Yamen’ features some nice solos from Egyptian musicians Yamen Abdallah on plucked qanun and Amr Darwish on violin. Sadly Yamen Abdallah passed away this summer.

The other notable presence in the playlist are the Balkan musicians, I guess because the war of the 1990s sent many to seek refuge in Switzerland. But they represent many different genres here. Elina Duni was born in Albania and came to Switzerland aged ten, but Albanian folk is a major influence in her music. It’s dominated her releases on the ECM label, which have led to concerts around the world. ‘Kur Më Del Në Derë’ (When I Go Out the Door) is a traditional song with a subtle irregular rhythm, with Rob Luft on guitar. Lakiko (aka Lana Kostic) is a Bosnian cellist and singer from Sarajevo, now in Lucerne. I first encountered her music thanks to the MOST project to promote artists from the Balkans. Her track ‘Sreca’ (Happiness) uses Bosnian lyrics associated with traditional sevdah songs, but in a new landscape where her cello soars to ecstatic heights.

The physical landscape of Switzerland is full of great vistas, but this playlist proves there are musical landscapes to match.

The Spotify playlist Swiss Music: Global & Folk is published by FONDATION SUISA and Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, and compiled by Roberto Haçaturyan, artlink. Find out more at swissmusic.ch