Trio Trëi and Simone Felbers iheimisch

Folk songs | Homeland | Loss

The fourth «Heimatklänge» («Sounds of Home») matinee comes with a contemplative note and the kind of experience that only songs sung to us can give. Simone Felber is one of the most dazzling figures in the current folk music scene in Switzerland. The Swiss Music Prize-winner is a classically trained yodeller but also one of the most versatile folk musicians to be found anywhere. The songs of her group «iheimisch» speak primarily of loss, while their «Totätanz» show sees them focus on the mediaeval concept of the dance of death, inspired by frescoes and murals found in Basel and Lucerne. Personal losses and encounters between life and death are put in a folk music context.

«Wir begleiten uns gegenseitig nach Hause» («Let’s walk one another home») is the title of the second half of the evening with a different ensemble. This moving phrase symbolises departure and arrival and the search for home. Vocal trio Trëi perform songs in 14 languages about wanderers and displaced peoples, from Hildegard of Bingen all the way to Arvo Pärt, questioning the often-unjust loss of homeland that is deeply rooted in human history throughout the ages. With a blend of their own compositions and songs from different origins, Trëi’s music gives voice to the inexpressible qualities of silence and courage, all the while asking the eternal question of where home truly is.