Swiss Review 3/2021

Swiss Review / June 2021 / No.3 24 Report of begging dressed up as subversion”. This begs the question: why don’t all 300 acts do a gigantic live-stream event together? Reflection of reality “Of course, we would rather play live than be seen doing nothing,” says Gil- gen fromKummerbuben. But it is right to focus on solidarity, inhis view. “And this is no token showof solidarity, but the biggest of its kind in our industry since the start of the pandemic. It is also very much a grassroots project.” Sputnik Sushi’s double bassist Reich- lin has a different opinion: “Having no face-to-face audience is hard for us musicians.” In-person performance is the life blood of music – his band would not have wanted to be part of a virtual concert. Only a non-event like this can reflect reality. What is hap- pening in Swissmusic at themoment? “Basically nothing.” More than just a metaphor Isn’t this a lot of fuss just for the sake of ametaphor? “No,” says Szanto, “the festival is much more than just that.” It is a show of collectivism – an act of solidarity, “in the face of amisfortune that is far from over”. Wouldn’t mak- ing more online music also be an act of solidarity? No, she says. “Music is organic and lives off performer-audi- ence interaction. Without this, the ecosystem dies.” Live streaming is no substitute for real gigs. More andmore people getting used to free online con- certs is not what we need. “Because it makes them believe that music costs nothing, which of course it does not.” No stage fright Point taken. Real-life face-to-face in- teraction is the onlyway to ensure the proverbial spark between people making themusic and those listening to it. Hence, an offline Ghost Festival makes sense. But how did the Ghost Festival actually pan out for the musi- cians themselves? Daniel Reichlin says it was a “difficult and slightly de- pressing weekend”. Having said that, he experienced no stage fright what- ever – a first. “But the anticipation, the stress, the sound check and the stage fright are precisely what you need to get the adrenaline going when the lights go down.” The Ghost Festival weekend was a little less silent for Urs Gilgen, who decided to play a bit of music at home with his children. Stephanie Szanto spent time in the mountains. She said she felt a world away fromthe concert scenewhile she was there. Ghost Orchestra The Ghost Festival went out with a dis- cernible whimper if not a bang, spawning a curious album in record time – a weird, eerie soundtrack re- corded by 200 of the 300 acts. It is a jarring record that reflects themalaise in which many musicians currently find themselves. One week after the Ghost Festival had ended, The Ghost Orchestra reached the top of the offi- cial Swiss album charts. Who could have imagined 200 different acts hit- ting number one at the same time? Not bad for a non-event. Encore? How about a second Ghost Festival? “Not if we can help it” is the consensus within the music industry. “Not nec- essary” is the optimistic political an- swer – the federal parliament has hur- riedly approved a public insurance scheme that will allow Swiss festival promoters to plan ahead for summer 2021 despite the ongoing uncertainty. It remains to be seen whether the op- timism is justified. Three of the big- gest long-standing open-air events – St. Gallen, the Gurten Festival in Berne, and the Paléo Festival in Nyon – have since cancelled for 2021. Al- though the music scene has not given up all hope: a summer of many small, impromptu pop-up concerts is possi- bly around the corner. Festival tickets and arm bands, but no ad- mission. You bought them and, in the con- ventional sense, got absolutely nothing in return. Photo MUL