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Gstaad Conducting Academy

Wednesday, 7 August 2024, Gstaad Festival Tent

L'Heure Bleue – Concert for All

Wednesday, 7 August 2024
5.30 pm, Gstaad Festival Tent

The grand opening of the anniversary edition kicks off with the first of three concerts by this year’s Gstaad Conducting Academy: it offers a sneak peek into the creative process of young conductors, who, in their inaugural week, collaborate with a carefully chosen selection from the outstanding Gstaad Festival Orchestra. In a chamber orchestra setting, these accomplished conductors, who emerged victorious among approximately 200 competitors during the application phase, will delve into a varied repertoire featuring excerpts from Beethoven’s symphonies, overtures and the dazzling “Rococo Variations” by Peter Tchaikovsky. The latter will be brought to life by cellist Christopher Jepson, who has been a steadfast soloist with the Gstaad Festival Orchestra since its inception. Make sure not to miss the second part of this week on August 9th at the Saanen Church, where the captivating Menuhin’s Heritage Artist Lucienne Renaudin Vary will grace the stage with her trumpet.

Gstaad Festival Orchestra
Participants of the Gstaad Conducting Academy
Christopher Jepson, Cello

Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868) 
Overture to the opera “Il barbiere di Siviglia”8'
Luigi Cherubini (1760-1842) 
Overture and highlights from the opera “Lodoïska”9'
Claude Debussy (1862-1918) 
“Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune”10'
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) 
Variations on a Rococo Theme in A Major for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 3320'
Etienne Nicolas Méhul (1763-1817) 
Overture to the opera “Joseph”7'
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) 
Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 3632'
 90'
Booking is mandatory – Free admission with a collection 

What a summer!
Thank you to our audience, our artists, and our partners.

We’re already looking forward to seeing you again:
Thursday 16.7 – Saturday 5.9.2026.

Programme and ticket details will be available from mid-December.
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Gstaad Menuhin Festival & Academy AG, P.O. Box, Dorfstrasse 60, 3792 Saanen