La Folia Festival in Rougemont
Launched in 2001 by an impassioned team, the Festival La Folia in Rougemont quickly established itself as a highlight in the calendars of lovers of ancient music … and of festivities. The secret of its success rests on a few basic ingredients:
- the Saint Nicolas Church: a little jewel of Romaneque architecture built by monks from Cluny in the 11th century
- an intimate and cheerful atmosphere
- an idyllic setting in the heart of the Pre-Alps in the Canton of Vaud
- original concert programmes featuring international as well as upcoming stars
- a circle of friends of eminent artists who look forward to returning to Rougemont
- on organization based completely on volunteer work … and great enthusiasm!
Headed by an association founded on 29 June 2000, the Festival’s organization is led by three key persons:
Sonia Lang – general secretary / director of Rougemont’s Office of Tourism
By virtue of her business education, Sonia Lang has directed the Office of Tourism in Rougemont since the beginning of 1998. With regard to the Festival La Folia, she is in charge of the secretariat, bookkeeping and general coordination.
Jean-Michel Chabloz – president / harpsichord maker
Jean-Michel Chabloz was trained as a cabinetmaker before specializing in the art of the construction of harpsichords in Amsterdam from 1990 to 1993. He has run his own business since 1996. He is happily married and the father of four children.
Antonin Scherrer – artistic director / writer
Born in Vevey (Vaud, Switzerland) in 1976, Antonin Scherrer is a writer and music journalist. He directed the Swiss recording label Claves Records from 2003 to 2008, regularly creates music broadcasts for Radio Suisse Romande-Espace 2, has directed the early music festival “La Folia” in Rougemont since its founding in 2001, and presides over the Pierre and Louisa Meylan Foundation (of which he was a laureate in 2003). He is the author of a collection of 49 portraits of string instrument makers from the French-speaking region of Switzerland (Revue Musicale de Suisse Romande 1999), a monograph about conductor and pedagogue Jacques Pache (Colophane 2000), a work dedicated to the founder of the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, Victor Desarzens (L’Aire 2008) and a biography about Swiss composer Raffaele d’Alessandro (Editions Papillon 2009). He is currently working on monographs about Robert Schumann (InFolio 2010) and Jean Perrin. Married and the father of four children, he resides in Château-d’Oex, a small corner of paradise in the Pre-Alps in the Canton of Vaud.
Programmes from previous editions of the Festival
2012 - Monteverdi, Mantoue & Italy | Impressions 2012
2011 - Bach and Germany | Impressions 2011
2010 - England | Impressions 2010
2009 – Les Folies d'Espagne | Impressions 2009
2008 – Les Folies françaises
2007 – Festa italiana
2006 – La Folia… Under Love’s Spell
2005 – To All the Winds
2004 – The Strings
2003 – The Flute
2002 – Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Residence
2001 – Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Residence