Three projects by female artists explore folk traditions, personal expression and vocal experimentation in an evening dedicated to memory, identity and belonging. With Pink Mountain Sagas, Sarah Buechi creates a soundscape inspired by Alpine myths, infused with folk, jazz and world music influences. Giua and Riccardo Tesi bring singer-songwriter music and Mediterranean folk music into dialogue, whilst the trio Trëi explores themes of migration, femininity and home through songs in many languages and traditions.
Saturday 22 August
Agorà
Sara Buechi “Pink Mountain Sagas”
Sarah Buechi vocals, composition
Franz Hellmüller guitar
Rafael Jerjen double bass
A singer and composer originally from the Canton of Glarus, Sarah Buechi has developed a personal musical language in which jazz, world music, European traditions and Indian influences converge to form a highly distinctive style. With “Pink Mountain Sagas”, released in 2024, she draws inspiration from Alpine myths, figures and landscapes, creating a sonic universe – in English and Swiss dialect – characterised by acoustic melodies, evocative atmospheres and jazz-inspired passages.
Giua & Riccardo Tesi “Retablos”
Giua classical guitar, vocals
Riccardo Tesi diatonic accordion
Friends and collaborators for over twenty years, Giua and Riccardo Tesi bring together their distinct yet complementary artistic paths in Retablos, spanning singer-songwriter music, folk music and instrumental composition. A leading figure in European world music, Tesi has redefined the language of the diatonic accordion by combining tradition with innovation. Giua, a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Genoa, moves between music, theatre and interdisciplinary projects, bringing to the duo a sensibility open to dialogue between different art forms.
Trëi “One’s for sorrow, two’s for joy”
Abélia Nordmann – vocals, harmonium
Gizem Şimşek – vocals, psaltery
Mara Miribung – vocals, cello
The vocal trio Trëi weaves together traditional repertoires from different cultures with original arrangements and compositions, creating performance projects that explore themes of the human experience. With “One’s for sorrow, two’s for joy”, the trio gives voice to female figures – midwives, seers, women in mourning, witches – who accompany the living and the dying on the fringes of existence. Moving between songs, oral tradition and shared memories, the trio explores themes of femininity, emancipation and loss
