GAIA 2025
Programme


Wednesday, 7 May, 7:30 p.m. – Casino Bern, Burgerratssaal

Durabilité


The French word “durabilité” is far more complex than its most common German translation: “sustainable”. "Durabilité" translated into English, is "durable" – like Ernest Chausson's Concerto for Violin, Piano and String Quartet or César Franck's Piano Quintet. The word also stands for the courage and steadfastness that Robert Dett demonstrated as the first Black American composer to complete the Bachelor of Music degree at Oberlin. And especially in situations On the Edge, as living composer Amanda Harberg musically expresses them, durabilité is of enormous value. Listen to our performance and you too will be assured of the longevity of art!

Download Flyer Programme (PDF)


Robert Nathaniel Dett (1882–1943)
from: In the Bottoms
for Piano solo (1913)
His Song
Juba Dance

Juliana Steinbach (Piano)
5’
 


Amanda Harberg (*1973)
On the Edge for two Violoncellos (1997)
Sandro Meszaros (Violoncello) 
Chiara Samatanga Enderle (Violoncello)

7’
 


César Franck (1822–1890)
Piano Quintet f minor, Op. 14 (1879)
Molto moderato quasi lento
Lento, con molto sentimento
Allegro non troppo, ma con fuoco

Juliana Steinbach (Piano) 
casalQuartett

33’
 


PAUSE
20’
 


Ernest Chausson (1855–1899)
Concert for Violin, Piano and String Quartet D major, Op. 21 (1889/91)
Décidé
Sicilienne
Grave
Très animé

Gwendolyn Masin (Violin)
Luis Magalhães (Piano)
casalQuartett

41’

 


Ticket prices: CHF 65.–/45.–/35.–

Students/Apprentices/KulturLegi: CHF 15.–
Children up to 12 years of age accompanied by an adult: CHF 5.–
Preschool children accompanied by an adult: CHF 0.–


Thursday, 20 November 2025, 6:30 p.m.
Bern Museum Quarter

GAIA Night of Music in the Bern Museum Quarter

Venues
Museum of Communication, Bern (Permanent Exhibition)
Natural History Museum of Berne (Skeleton Gallery)
PHBern (Media Library)

On the opening night, embark on a musical journey through the three Bernese institutions mentioned above, enjoying three half-hour concerts in distinctive atmosphere. The programmes are a surprise and offer an insight into this year’s GAIA Music Festival. The event concludes with a reception at the Museum of Communication, offering the opportunity to meet the artists in person.

 


6:30 – 6:45 p.m.
Welcome and introduction to the concert evening
Museum of Communication


7:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Concert I
at all three venues


7:45 – 8:15 p.m.
Concert II
at all three venues


8:30 – 9:00 p.m.
Concert III
at all three venues


from 9:00 – approx. 10:30 p.m.
Apéro with the artists
– a space for exchange and encounters
in the Museum of Communication

 


The programmes are a surprise and offer an insight into this year’s GAIA Music Festival.

Tickets available from September

Tickets: CHF 25.–

Students/Apprentices/KulturLegi: CHF 5.–
Children up to 12 years accompanied by an adult: CHF 0.–


Friday, 21 November 2025, 7:30 p.m.
The Town Church of Thun

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger


It’s probably a primal instinct of human beings to constantly strive for self-improvement and better living conditions. Harder, better, faster, stronger – the title of the well-known Daft Punk hit expresses this clearly. But self-optimization is only possible for those who believe in themselves: like Ravel, Takemitsu, Chopin, or Hildegard von Bingen, who were exceptional in their thinking yet never gave up on their dreams. And it paid off!

72 minutes of music, concert with interval (20’)

 


Tōru Takemitsu (1930–1996)
Toward the Sea II (1981)
for Alto Flute, Harp and String Quintet
I. The Night
II. Moby Dick
III. Cape Cod


Caroline Shaw (*1982)
Valencia (2012)
for String Quintet
Swiss premiere in an arrangement by Ben Murphy


Maurice Ravel (1875–1937)
Sonata (1920–1922)
for Violin and Cello
I. Allegro
II. Très vif
III. Lent
IV. Vif, avec entrain


Hildegard von Bingen (1098–1179)
O Ecclesia
arr. by Tom Coult
for Violin and String Quintet


Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849)
Nocturne No. 20, C-sharp minor
arr. for Harp


Daft Punk (1993–2021)
Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
Get Lucky

arr. for Harp by Alexander Boldachev


Maurice Ravel (1875–1937)
Introduction et Allegro
for Harp, Flute, Clarinet and String Quartet


Isaac Albéniz (1860–1909)
from: Suite Española Op. 47
arr. for Harp
Asturias (1888)

 


Musicians
Alto Flute/Flute: Kaspar Zehnder
Clarinet: Moritz Roelcke
Harp: Alexander Boldachev
Violin: Anna-Liisa Bezrodny, Jesper Gasseling, László G. Horváth, Gareth Lubbe, Gwendolyn Masin
Viola: Martin Moriarty, Ivan Vukčević
Cello: Attila Kónya, Samuel Niederhauser, Martina Schucan
Double Bass: Jordi Carrasco Hjelm

 


Tickets available from September

Tickets: CHF 65.–/45.–

Students/Apprentices/KulturLegi: CHF 15.–
Children up to 12 years accompanied by an adult: CHF 5.–
Preschool children accompanied by an adult: CHF 0.–


Saturday, 22 November 2025, 7:30 p.m.
Bern (Old Town) – Details upon registration

Fairyland

There are only a few places left.


A fairy tale carpet, woven together by Gwendolyn Masin and narrated by Stefan Kurt –
presented across two mysterious levels.

Imagination knows no bounds – be it in music or in poetry. So when stories performed by an actor
meet music, entirely new realms of imagination emerge. Hand in hand, the words of Rilke, Poe, and Wilde blend with the sounds of Prokofiev and Holbrooke, coming together to form an evocative fairyland. At times, imagination can also impress, as in the compositions of José Pablo Moncayo or Miklós Rózsa. What stories come to your mind when you hear this music?

The concert consists of two halves, taking place on different floors, with each part performed twice. The audience is divided between the two levels and switches floors during an extended intermission.

The spoken texts remain a secret until the performance – they are only revealed on the evening itself and handed out to the audience in printed form.

An enchanting concert on two enchanting floors

2 x 60 minutes of music, followed by a reception

Level 0


José Pablo Moncayo (1912–1958)
Amatzinac (First Version 1935)
for Flute and String Quartet


Miklós Rózsa (1907–1995)
Sonata Op. 15a
for two Violins
I. Allegro risoluto
II. Lento assai
III. Vivo e giocoso


Alan Ridout (1934–1996)
Ferdinand the Bull
A Musical Tale
for Violin and Narrator


William Grant Still (1895–1978)
Danzas de Panama (1948)
for String Quartet


Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953)
from: Romeo and Juliet Suite, Op. 64b
for Violin and Piano
The Montagues and Capulets


Osvaldo Golijov (*1960)
Lullaby and Doina (2001)
for Flute, Clarinet and Strings

 


Musicians
Flute: Kaspar Zehnder
Clarinet: Moritz Roelcke
Violin: Anna-Liisa Bezrodny, Nicolas Dautricourt, Jesper Gasseling, László G. Horváth
Viola: Gareth Lubbe, Martin Moriarty, Ivan Vukčević
Cello: Attila Kónya, Samuel Niederhauser
Double Bass: Jordi Carrasco Hjelm
Piano: Luis Magalhães, Caspar Vos

Narrators
Stefan Kurt
Gwendolyn Masin

 

Level 2


George Gershwin (1898–1937)
from: Arrangements of the Gershwin-Songbook
for Violin, Double Bass and Piano
Strike up the Band
I Got Rhythm
The Man I Love

Swiss premiere


Paul Schoenfield (1947–2024)
Trio (1990)
for Clarinet, Violin and Piano
I. Freylakh
II. March
III. Nigun
IV. Kozatske


Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (1895–1968)
Pastorale and Rondo Op. 185
for Clarinet, Violin, Cello and Piano


Joseph Holbrooke (1878–1958)
Nocturne Fairyland Op. 57, No. 1
for Clarinet, Viola and Piano


Igor Frolov (1937–2013)
Divertimento
for two Violins and Piano

 


Musicians
Clarinet: Moritz Roelcke
Violin: Nicolas Dautricourt, Gareth Lubbe
Viola: Martin Moriarty
Cello: Martina Schucan
Double Bass: Jordi Carrasco Hjelm
Piano: Luis Magalhães, Caspar Vos

Narrator
Stefan Kurt

 


Admission on a donation basis: from CHF 200.–
Your support makes the realisation of this special concert and the GAIA Music Festival 2025 possible.


Sunday, 23 November 2025, 5 p.m.
Hilterfingen Church

Metamorphosis


“The only constant in life is change,” said Buddha. In this concert, GAIA offers musical metamorphoses: whether it be through the restructuring of the old – like Max Richter’s recomposition of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – or as a journey toward a new, personal compositional style, as in Arvo Pärt’s Tabula Rasa. Richard Strauss lived through the upheavals of two world wars and underwent a profound inner transformation. Time flows, but music preserves moments of its metamorphosis.

68 minutes of music, concert with interval (20’)

 


Jorge Villoslada Durán (*1997)
Soundscape
Prélude

World premiere


Max Richter (*1966)
from: Recomposed: Vivaldi – The Four Seasons
for Violin and String Ensemble
accompanied by synthesizer by Jorge Villoslada Durán

Spring


Arvo Pärt (*1935)
Tabula Rasa (1977)
for two Violins, String Ensemble and prepared Piano
I. Ludus – Con moto
II. Silentium – Senza moto


Richard Strauss (1864–1949)
Metamorphosen (1944/45)
for String Septet

 


Musicians
Violin: Anna-Liisa Bezrodny, Nicolas Dautricourt, Jesper Gasseling, László G. Horváth, Gwendolyn Masin
Viola: Gareth Lubbe, Martin Moriarty, Ivan Vukčević
Cello: Attila Kónya, Samuel Niederhauser, Martina Schucan
Double Bass: Jordi Carrasco Hjelm
Prepared Piano: Caspar Vos
Synthesizer: Jorge Villoslada Durán

 


Tickets available from September

Tickets: CHF 65.–/45.–

Students/Apprentices/KulturLegi: CHF 15.–
Children up to 12 years accompanied by an adult: CHF 5.–
Preschool children accompanied by an adult: CHF 0.–