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The (; ) is a traditional festival which takes place in
Vevey Vevey (; ; ) is a town in Switzerland in the Vaud, canton of Vaud, on the north shore of Lake Leman, near Lausanne. The German name Vivis is no longer commonly used. It was the seat of the Vevey (district), district of the same name until 200 ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. It has been organised by the Confrérie des Vignerons ('Brotherhood of Winegrowers') in Vevey since 1797. The organising committee is free to choose how often the festival takes place, but the idea is that it is held once in a generation. Up to now, the interval between two festivals has varied between 14 and 28 years. The most recent festival took place in July and August 2019, 20 years after the preceding one (1999). The festival features a show celebrating the world of
winemaking Winemaking, wine-making, or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its Ethanol fermentation, fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over ...
; performances take place in the
Vevey Vevey (; ; ) is a town in Switzerland in the Vaud, canton of Vaud, on the north shore of Lake Leman, near Lausanne. The German name Vivis is no longer commonly used. It was the seat of the Vevey (district), district of the same name until 200 ...
marketplace A marketplace, market place, or just market, is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a ''souk'' (from ...
on the shores of
Lake Geneva Lake Geneva is a deep lake on the north side of the Alps, shared between Switzerland and France. It is one of the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lakes in Western Europe and the largest on the course of the Rhône. Sixty percent () ...
, and other festivities are organised around the town. Since 2016, the Fête des Vignerons has been included in
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
's
intangible cultural heritage An intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is a practice, representation, expression, knowledge, or skill considered by UNESCO to be part of a place's cultural heritage. Buildings, historic places, monuments, and artifacts are cultural property. In ...
. The 2019 edition of the festival was recommended as one of ''
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...
''s "world's most exciting destinations", one of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''s "places to go in 2019" and was listed in ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
''s "Where to go in 2019" list.


History


Origins

The origin of the Fête des Vignerons lies in the processions of the Vevey Confrérie des Vignerons. These processions are believed to have started in the Middle Ages. At that time, the Confrérie des Vignerons was called the Abbaye de l'Agriculture. In 1647 the Abbaye de l'Agriculture was only a small association. It grew during the 18th century and by 1776 almost a quarter of Vevey's male population had become members. It was never a gathering of vineyard workers, as its current name would suggest, but of landholders who entrusted the care of their vineyards to those workers. A small group of experts from the Confrérie visited the vines at different times of year to judge and classify the quality of work of the winegrowers, an activity that continues to this day. The Abbot-Presidents (presidents of the council of the Confrérie) were, and still are, most often members of the City Councils, lawyers, notaries or judges. Around 1770 the Confrérie des Vignerons decided on its aim of encouraging improvements in winegrowing and rewarding the vineyard workers' good results, instead of concentrating on any possible failings. The best vineyard workers paraded through the town of Vevey together with members of the Confrérie. The archives of the Confrérie des Vignerons first record a parade in 1651, but it is probable that the parades started before that date. The parade followed a general meeting where the vineyard workers' results were commented on and criticised and was followed by a banquet. The parades took the form of a pageant, with musicians and singers. In 1730 the parade included a small boy on top of a wine barrel playing the role of Bacchus. From 1741, the parades were held every three years. In 1747, a second theatrical character was added to the parade with a young apprentice playing the role of Ceres, goddess of wheat and the harvest.Other characters who have become traditional elements of the Fête des Vignerons appeared in the following years;
Noah Noah (; , also Noach) appears as the last of the Antediluvian Patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5–9), the Quran and Baháʼí literature, ...
(the very first winegrower), people carrying the grapes of Canaan, priests and priestesses from Greek mythology, basket-bearers (
kanephoros The Kanephoros (, , pl. Kanephoroi (Greek: ); latinate plural form Canephorae; lit. "Basket Bearers") was an honorific office given to unmarried young women in ancient Greece, which involved the privilege of leading the procession to sacrifice at ...
) and a group of fauns and
bacchantes In Greek mythology, maenads (; ) were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of his retinue, the '' thiasus''. Their name, which comes from μαίνομαι (''maínomai'', “to rave, to be mad; to rage, to be angr ...
. The parade of 1783 included
Silenus In Greek mythology, Silenus (; , ) was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus. He is typically older than the satyrs of the Dionysian retinue ('' thiasos''), and sometimes considerably older, in which case he may be referred to as a Pa ...
, riding a donkey. In 1791, a coronation ceremony was added at the end of the parade to honour the best vineyard workers. Six years later, on 9 August 1797, the coronation ceremony was combined into a staged spectacle. The costumed participants of the parade entered the Vevey marketplace where a platform and two thousand seats had been erected. The dances and songs were performed in the marketplace before the participants headed into the town, repeating the songs and dances along the parade. The spectacle and the parade were divided into the four seasons; first Spring with the god
Pales In ancient Roman religion, Pales was a deity of shepherds, flocks and livestock. Regarded as male by some sources and female by others, ''Pales'' can be either singular or plural in Latin, and refers at least once to a pair of deities. Pales' fe ...
, then Summer with Ceres, Autumn with
Silenus In Greek mythology, Silenus (; , ) was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus. He is typically older than the satyrs of the Dionysian retinue ('' thiasos''), and sometimes considerably older, in which case he may be referred to as a Pa ...
and finally Winter with
Noah Noah (; , also Noach) appears as the last of the Antediluvian Patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5–9), the Quran and Baháʼí literature, ...
and a village wedding celebration. This was the origin of the elaborate celebrations which continue to this day.


19th century

Due to the unrest of the Vaudoise Revolution, then the
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
, the following years did not allow for a new celebration. It would take twenty-two years, until 1819, before a new celebration was organized. The 1819 celebration took place from August 5 to 6 presided over by Abbot-President Louis Levade who had presided over the first staged spectacle in 1797. About 730 actors and performers participated in a 2,000-seat arena. As the
canton of Vaud Vaud ( ; , ), more formally Canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts; its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms bears the motto "Liberté et patrie" on a white-green bicolou ...
had recently joined the
Swiss Confederation Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerlan ...
, the theme of this first 19th century celebration glorified tradition and patriotism. The traditional song "
Ranz des vaches A ''Ranz des Vaches'' (, ) or ''Kuhreihen'' () is a simple melody traditionally played on the horn by the Swiss Alpine herdsmen as they drove their cattle to or from the pasture. The ''Kuhreihen'' was linked to the Swiss nostalgia and Homesick ...
" was sung for the first time at the Fête des Vignerons. The organiser Counsellor Walther, considered that the spectacle had become complicated enough to need a director, the dance master David Constantin, and a musical director, David Glady, who selected and arranged the music and texts. The third Fête des Vignerons took place from 8 to 9 August 1833 under the direction of Abbot-President Vincent Doret. About 780 actors and performers participated in a 4,000-seat arena, once again organised by Counsellor Walther under the direction of David Constantin. Walther commissioned Samuel Glady (son of David Glady) to compose original music to complement songs from the traditional repertoire. Costumes were designed by Theophile Steinlen. In 1851, the fourth Fête des Vignerons was held from 7 to 8 August under the direction of the Abbot-President François Déjoux. François Grast was engaged to write a complete musical score, giving the fourth Fête a stylistic unity and bringing the music and staging to the fore. About 900 actors and performers participated in an 8,000-seat arena under the direction of Benjamin Archinard. This was the first time that the ''Ancients Swiss'' troop, previously intended to supervise the procession, marched. François Grast also composed the music for the next Fête des Vignerons, which took place from 26 to 27 July 1865 under Abbot-President Louis Bonjour. About 1,200 actors and performers participated in a 10,500-seat arena. Benjamin Archinard was dancing master as at the previous festival with Pierre Lacaze responsible for costumes and staging. As the celebration grew it became more difficult to finance and had to rely on a public subscription for one third of its budget. From 5 to 9 August 1889, the sixth Fête des Vignerons was held under the direction of the Abbot-President (and former President of the Confederation) Paul Ceresole. On this occasion, the show was staged by Ernest Burnat to the music of Hugo de Senger and brought together 1,379 actors and performers in a 12,000-seat arena. This was the first time that the "Ranz des vaches" had been performed by a soloist, Placid Curtat, and not by a choir of ''armaillis''. The highly acclaimed performance of the soloist showed the symbolic function of this song in the festival and established the close link between Vevey and the heights of the
Veveyse District Veveyse District (; ; ) is one of seven districts in the canton of Fribourg in Switzerland. It has a population of (as of ). It takes its name from the river Veveyse which flows through the district. Municipalities It consists of the following ...
and the
Gruyère District Gruyère ( ; ) is one of seven Districts of Switzerland, districts of the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Fribourg (canton), Fribourg in Switzerland. It has a population of (as of ). Its capital is Bulle. Municipalities Mergers and name ch ...
.


20th century

The seventh Fête des Vignerons took place from 4 to 9 August 1905. The Abbot-President at the time was the national councillor Emile Gaudard.
René Morax René Morax (11 May 1873 – 3 January 1963) was a Swiss writer, playwright, stage director and theatre manager. He founded the Théâtre du Jorat in Morges in 1908, and promoted historical and rural theatre in French in Switzerland. He is known f ...
wrote the libretto and directed the spectacle. Gustave Doret composed the music. The 1905 Fête des Vignerons was notable in that the procession become a secondary element as well as being the first celebration not to restrict the participation of women and girls. About 1,800 actors and performers participated in an arena with 12,500 seats. From 1 to 9 August 1927, the eighth Fête des Vignerons was presided over by the same Abbot-President as the previous one, Emile Gaudard, then Switzerland's delegate to the
League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...
. The production was directed by Edouard Vierne (
René Morax René Morax (11 May 1873 – 3 January 1963) was a Swiss writer, playwright, stage director and theatre manager. He founded the Théâtre du Jorat in Morges in 1908, and promoted historical and rural theatre in French in Switzerland. He is known f ...
declined the invitation), replaced by A. Durec a few weeks before the event, while the music was composed as at the previous celebration by Gustave Doret with a libretto by Pierre Girard. The costumes and scenery were designed by Ernest Bieler and the choreographer was Georges Meriadec. About 2,000 performers participated, gathered in a 14,000-seat arena inspired by a medieval city surrounded by a wall and towers. In 1955, the Fête des vignerons took place from August 1 to 15, presided over by the Abbot-President David Dénéréaz. In a context of increasing entertainment possibilities, barely a decade after the end of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the organisation became more professional: it was the first festival to have an international focus, more than doubling its capacity compared to the previous one (the first performances were not entirely sold out, but additional ones were organised following their success). The show was directed by Oscar Eberlé to music by Carlo Hemmerling and a libretto by Géo H. Blanc. 3,850 performers participated in a 16,000-seat arena. The 1955 edition was the first to organize night performances. From 30 July to 14 August 1977, the tenth Fête des Vignerons was presided over by the Abbot-President Philippe Dénéréaz. It was directed by Charles Apothéloz with music by Jean Balissat and a libretto by Henri Debluë. The sets and costumes were designed by Jean Monod. André Charlet directed the choirs and orchestra. 4,250 performers participated in a 15,776-seat arena organized around a large solar clock with four cardinal points indicating the four seasons. The 1999 Fête des Vignerons took place from 29 July to 15 August. Presided over by the Abbot-President Marc-Henri Chaudet, it was directed by François Rochaix with music by Jean-François Bovard, Michel Hostettler and Jost Meier. The libretto was by François Debluë (nephew of the 1977 librettist Henri Debluë) while Jean-Claude Maret directed the scenography and Catherine Zuber was responsible for the costumes. The show featured "Arlevin", a winemaker representing the crowned winemakers (the coronation only took place during the first performance). 5,050 performers participated in a 16,000-seat arena. On 11 August the audience was able to see, during the show, the only
total solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs approximately every six months, during the eclipse season i ...
of the decade. File:Vevey - fête des vignerons - maquette de l'amphithéâtre de 1955.JPG, 1955 File:Vevey - fête des vignerons - maquette de l'amphithéâtre de 1977.JPG, 1977 File:Vevey - fête des vignerons - maquette de l'amphithéâtre de 1999.JPG, 1999


21st century

On 1 December 2016 the Fête des Vignerons was added to
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
's Representative List of the
intangible cultural heritage An intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is a practice, representation, expression, knowledge, or skill considered by UNESCO to be part of a place's cultural heritage. Buildings, historic places, monuments, and artifacts are cultural property. In ...
of Humanity. It is the first Swiss tradition to be included. The twelfth Fête des Vignerons was held from 18 July to 11 August 2019. It was presided over by Abbot-President François Margot and was directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca. The music was composed by Maria Bonzanigo (musical director), Jérôme Berney and Valentin Villard, while the libretto was the work of Stéphane Blok and Blaise Hofmann. The scenography was by Hugo Gargiulo, Bryn Walters was the choreographer and the costumes were designed by Giovanna Buzzi. Among the approximately 6,000 actors and performers, there were nearly 1,000 singers (local choirs, choir-percussionists, children) conducted by Caroline Meyer and Céline Grandjean in an arena of 20,000 seats. "Ranz des vaches" was performed by eleven ''armaillis'' (traditional cow-herdsmen), rather than a soloist as had been done since 1889. The 2019 spectacle traced the activities of winegrowers through the seasons, seen through the eyes and imagination of a small girl called "petite Julie". The opening scene is set during the grape harvest. Julie's grandfather is playing cards and drinking wine outside a winegrowers' hut (locally known as a "capite"). During the spectacle, Julie's grandfather teaches her about the mysteries of grapevines, the beauty of the landscape and the culture of wine-making. She repeatedly encounters the Three Doctors, clownish local worthies and experts of the Fête. Reality is transformed into a dreamlike fairy world through Julie's imagination and she is accompanied on her adventures by a beautiful dragonfly.


References


See also

* '' The Headsman: The Abbaye des Vignerons'', 1833 novel by James Fenimore Cooper {{DEFAULTSORT:Fete Des Vignerons Vevey 1797 establishments in Europe 18th-century establishments in Switzerland Swiss wine Wine-related events Tourist attractions in the canton of Vaud Food and drink festivals in Switzerland Wine festivals Festivals established in the 18th century Recurring events established in 1797