Some people will go an awfully long way to yodel: the “Wildrose” yodel club, for example, has come all the way from Canada to take part in this weekend’s Federal Yodelling Festival in Brig-Glis, canton Valais. (Julie Hunt, swissinfo.ch)
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2 minutes
Julie worked as a radio reporter for BBC and independent radio all over the UK before joining swissinfo.ch's predecessor, Swiss Radio International, as a producer. After attending film school, Julie worked as an independent filmmaker before coming to swissinfo.ch in 2001.
The Wildrose club was formed in Alberta 20 years ago by ten Swiss emigrants. Now there are 15 members of all ages and from all walks of life, some of them second generation Swiss.
Ahead of the festival, the group, together with the local Riederalp yodel club, gathered for a sing-song on the Eggishorn, overlooking the Aletsch glacier. swissinfo.ch talked to some of the Wildrose members about why they love Canada, what they miss about Switzerland, and whether it’s important to keep Swiss traditions alive when living abroad.
Yodelling almost died out in Switzerland when cheese production moved from the mountains to the valleys. Alpine herdsmen and dairymen used to yodel to keep each other posted with the latest news or to drive cattle home, at a time when there were neither phones nor convenient forms of transport. Yodelling and the alphorn experienced a renaissance with the revival of folklore and the advent of tourism. Once the privilege of city guilds, flag throwing has been growing in popularity since it was first promoted in 1910 by the Swiss Yodelling Association.
15,000 yodellers, alphornists and flag throwers are expected this weekend at the 30th Federal Yodelling Festival. Among the foreign participants, apart from the Canadians, are groups from Japan, Italy and South Africa. The venue, Brig-Glis, is gearing up for 150,000 visitors.
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Making money from yodelling
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While some people find yodelling a cacophony of clichés and others a living art form, it is a welcome business opportunity for canton Valais.
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The yodel: is it a herders‘ call, a melancholy mountain lament or a high art form? Depends on who you ask, what continent you’re on and what century you lived in, say yodellers and enthusiasts on both sides of the Atlantic.
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Räss bases her work in tradition while also creating her own yodelling styles. She tells swissinfo.ch that Swiss folk music is undergoing changes, from children learning how to yodel in camps to a shift among the public and musicians to explore their roots. Music should have an “openness” to technology and between genres and even…
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