The Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra: Learning to Become an Orchestra

The Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra is an initial stepping stone for young instrumentalists. Interview with Samuel Goldscheider, Head of Orchestras, and Mattia Bornati, Artistic Administrator of Orchestras.

“It is the combination of artistic excellence, cultural openness, and personal development that makes the Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra unique.”
Samuel Goldscheider, Head of Orchestras

What makes it unique?

SG: The VFJO brings together musicians aged 15 to 18 from all over the world. It’s a stepping stone because it offers them a rare experience: several concerts, an opera production, and the opportunity to work with top-level artists. What’s unique is seeing an orchestra emerge from a group of young people who don’t know each other at the start.

What do you look for when selecting these young musicians?

MB: First, we need to check the basics: playing in tune, being in rhythm, mastering their instrument. Beyond technique, I mainly look for artistic potential and the ability to integrate into a group. Many dream of a solo career, but the VFJO is first and foremost an orchestral experience. We build an ensemble.

In just a few days, these teenagers become a real orchestra. What impresses you the most?

MB: The sound of the orchestra. On the first day, they’ve never played together. Then, gradually, something emerges: a sonic identity, a collective energy. Individually, they don’t yet have the maturity of a professional musician. But, once united, they transform. The group becomes stronger than the sum of its individuals. That’s the magic.

Beyond music, what is the VFJO’s mission?

SG: We don’t just train musicians, but also citizens open to the world. The VFJO brings together very different cultures, languages, and backgrounds. The success of the project is not measured solely by the number of those who will become professionals, even if some VFJO alumni then continue their journey to the VFO, and sometimes to the VFCO. It also lies in this human openness that they carry with them.

Interview by Jean-Philippe Jutzi

Carmina Burana

July 25 | 6:30 PM – 8:45 PM | Combins

Two emblematic works from the interwar period, each with extraordinary emotional power. The Junior Orchestra, conducted by James Gaffigan, will be on stage for the first time during an evening concert at the Salle des Combins. Alongside them, Bruce Liu, 1st prize winner of the Chopin Competition, will illuminate Prokofiev’s 3rd Piano Concerto, and the Oberwalliser Vokalensemble will demonstrate the full extent of their vocal power in the famous Carmina Burana.

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La Traviata

August 2 | 2:00 PM – 4:30 PM | Combins

Throughout the Verbier Festival, the singers of the Academy’s Atelier Lyrique, selected through a highly competitive process, benefit from intensive coaching. They present the result of their work at the close of the Festival during a traditional staged reading of a major opera from the repertoire. This year will feature the legendary Traviata by Verdi, conducted by James Gaffigan, Music Director of the wonderful Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra.

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The Verbier Festival wishes to express its deepest gratitude to its patrons, sponsors, partners and public institutions for their support and generous contributions.