JUNE 2016
20 years of fun!
1997 at Mt Buller. The original line-up (l to r): John Wanner (Leader/1st Clarinet/Soprano Sax/Arranger), Paul Winter (2nd Clarinet/Soprano Sax), Chris Thalmann (Schwyzerörgeli), Claudia Thalmann (3rd Clarinet/ Soprano Sax), Markus Zihlmann (Founder/Accordion/Schwyzerörgeli), Beat Beutler (Bass Guitar).
Happy Birthday ‘Kapelle Grüetzi Mitenand’! How fast do 20 years pass, you might ask? Well, when it comes to playing music and having fun, it passes rather quickly. It was during the Swiss National Day celebrations of 1996, that I spoke with John Wanner and Chris Thalmann about playing some Swiss music together, perhaps for a gig or two in the future. Both gentlemen jumped at the idea of forming a Swiss band, a ‘Kapelle’, to rehearse some authentic tunes from our homeland. Chris brought his daughter Claudia along, who plays the clarinet, John produced a clarinet player from his school called Paul Winter and Beat Beutler, from the Swiss Consulate, played the bass guitar So there we were: three clarinets, two accordions, and a bass guitar. Not bad! A six piece band and all enthusiastic to practice and play some Swiss tunes. As he was a music teacher, John Wanner had much of the sheet music available for us to learn from and practice! John also
composed several pieces of music, with perhaps a little of an Australian accent to them like, ‘Grüetzi Mitenand’, ‘Tango für Christian Thalmann’, ‘Slalom mit Zihlmann’, ‘Saxy Boogie’ and ‘Swiss Club Fox’, just to name a few. Before the year’s end, our repertoire contained 40 songs and within a year it was over 80 songs! All our band members are professionals in very diverse, non-musical fields but we are united in our common hobby – we all look forward to getting together to play music. We decided to play every first Thursday of the month at the Swiss Club. While performing, we were asked to play at various engagements and have played at many places and functions since. However, the first Thursday of the month has never been neglected and at times there has been as many as 10 musicians performing at the Club. A quick calculation shows this to be over 250 performances for the ‘Kapelle’ during the past 20 years! One of the Kapelle’s earliest highlights
was performing at various resorts on Mt Buller in 1997. The group was wellreceived by ‘non-Swiss’ audiences at the ski school and several restaurants. John had the drive to rehearse and record a professional double-CD, which we launched in 2009. Many of our great pieces can be heard on this special edition. The band plays music from various regions of Switzerland – from ‘Bündnerland’, as well as pieces from the ‘Innerschwyz’ and ‘Bärnbiet’. In addition, as a bit of fun, we often play a piece of ‘Boogie’ or ‘Big Band Jazz’, just to mix it up a bit – as well as some classic European hits. Over the years we have always played a very special gig at the Swiss Club for the Dance Group ‘Alpenrose’. This is for their annual ‘Unterhaltungsabend’. This gig has seen many happy dancers and patrons returning year after year. We always received much support from the management of the Swiss Club. A big thank-you goes to Roger Moullet and his team who have looked after us so well and have helped secure our Thursday gig each month. I would also like to thank the Swiss Club, its’ committee and the club members for the support they have given us over the past 20 years. We all look forward to the next 20 years of Swiss music at the Swiss Club in Flinders Lane! Markus Zihlmann The Swiss Club of Victoria warmly congratulates the members of the ‘Kapelle Grüetzi Mitenand’ on their milestone anniversary. We thank you for the many memorable moments that you have given us with your happy, familiar tunes that remind us of our homeland. Thursday night once a month at the Club would not be the same without you – in fact, the Swiss Club would not be the same without you! Thank you for your enthusiasm and sharing your musical passion with us for many years to come!
8 9 F l i n d e r s L a n e • Me l b o u r n e 3 0 0 0 • Vi c t o r i a • Au s t ra l i a • w w w. s wi s s c l u b vi c . c o m . a u