The young cellist Lyam Chenaux, recipient of the 2026 Prize from the Rotary Club Verbier Saint-Bernard

Established over 110 years ago and present worldwide with 1.2 million members, the Rotary Club aims to improve living conditions globally. Its actions cover essential areas such as literacy, peace promotion, access to drinking water and healthcare, particularly through the fight for polio eradication. Rotary primarily supports charitable works and associations but also intervenes in favor of culture.

Since 2013, the Rotary Club Verbier Saint-Bernard has demonstrated its commitment to the Verbier Festival by awarding a CHF 5,000.– prize to a young Swiss performer from the Verbier Festival Academy, whether a soloist or a lyrical artist. The name of the laureate is proposed to the Rotary Club by the Verbier Festival. Several laureates from previous editions, such as cellists Clara Schlotz and Estelle Revaz, as well as pianist Fanny Monnet, have since distinguished themselves on the international music scene.

This loyalty to the Festival over the years has been made possible thanks to the generosity of Rotary members, notably Jérôme Viellet.

This year, the talented Lyam Chenaux received the 2026 Prize from the Rotary Club Verbier Saint-Bernard. Aged 16 and hailing from the canton of Vaud, Lyam, a former member of the Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra, will soon perform in concert on August 1 at 11:00 AM at the Église de Verbier. Do not miss the opportunity to discover him in Mozart’s Piano Quartet No. 2.