Nestled among snowy peaks and alpine pastures, the Verbier Festival provides an idyllic backdrop for three magical weeks of performances by the greatest musicians of our time. As a member of the medici.tv team, I’ve been lucky enough to attend the festival every year for a while now, and I will forever treasure my conversations with many of the Verbier musicians — some of whom I have listened to since my childhood — either backstage at their concerts or in interviews. These conversations shape how I listen to the artists when I see them perform throughout the year, and I’ve come to admire some of them even more after speaking with them.
There is always something going on at Verbier, to the point where several memories often flood back to me at once. You don’t just run into musicians in and around the concert halls, but also out doing their shopping at the supermarket; while out getting ingredients for a raclette night with colleagues, say, you might just spot Mischa Maisky browsing the vegetable aisle! Above all, it’s a unique opportunity to see all of the greatest classical musicians united in one place, sometimes all on stage at the same time in one of the galas for which Verbier is so famous. For me, however, it is when these star soloists are alone in the spotlight that they shine the brightest, and many examples come to mind.
If I had to recommend just one concert, it would have to be this superb recital by Mao Fujita in the intimate atmosphere of Verbier Church. The piano virtuoso delivers a balanced program that pays homage to the greatest of pianist-composers such as Mozart, Liszt, Clara and Robert Schumann, and, most notably, features my favorite nocturne by the great Frédéric Chopin: his Opus 48, No. 1 in C minor, which opens the concert. Speaking as a composer, I find this piece to be not only a pleasure to listen to, but also a delight to behold in its written form. If I had to pick from Chopin’s nocturnes, it is this one that I would’ve liked to say I composed myself; its sophisticated structure, with an explosive development section, surpasses the norms of typical nocturnes.
Chopin’s Nocturne in C minor stuns with a surprisingly tumultuous development section after its elegant introduction.
Having had the pleasure of interviewing him at Verbier in 2023, I would add that Mao Fujita is not just a genius pianist, but a humble and sunny person with contagious enthusiasm. His sensitivity and humanity radiate from him on stage, filling his performance with feeling and character, not to mention his fluid technique that makes every sonata, every concerto, look effortless. Before making his way to the bright lights of the festival’s biggest stages, he was once a student at the Verbier Academy; all the more reason to savor this first-class recital, if any more were needed. If you enjoy it, buy me a coffee and I’ll recommend ten more!
