Our events

Here, you’ll find our upcoming and past events, as well as some of our artistic productions.

Our upcoming events

Festival des Bastions

Festival des Bastions returns for its fourth edition with a number of exceptional free concerts at the Kiosque des Bastions from 20 to 24 August 2023. The event aims to democratise classical music by making it accessible to as many people as possible. This year, the format is changing somewhat, with five consecutive concert evenings and a selection of internationally renowned artists, all with different backgrounds and styles ranging from classical to jazz through to gypsy music.

Past Events

Festival des Bastions

Festival des Bastions returns for its third edition, with a rich, varied programme of several concerts that will take place on the Kiosque des Bastions rotunda during the summer period. The goal of the event is to democratise classical music by offering audiences a unique shared experience.

Our artistic productions

Classical, but far from traditional!

A concert that disrupts the norm and aims to be accessible in every respect: Fabrizio von Arx sweeps away the immensity of the classical repertoire to articulate it around his Stradivarius, “The Angel” ex-Madrileno, and the incredible sounds he shares with audiences for their contemplation. A production that is:

conducted by a man considered one of the best conductors of our times, Gábor Takács-Nagy,
accompagnato dall’Orchestre de Chambre di Ginevra
also honoured by the two principal dancers of the Béjart Ballet Lausanne, moving among and interacting with the musicians and audience: Julien Favreau and Elisabet Ros, with choreography reflecting a quest for the violin.

Vibrations

A concert in 2 parts with an intermission, bringing together the greatest and most promising artists of the new classical scene on one stage with their different instruments and styles. Drawing from classical to jazz repertoire, audiences will be taken on a journey of sound and meaning from Bach to Queen.

A truly vibrant, lively, endearing show with extraordinary artistic collaborations:

Happy 300 !

A concert to celebrate the tercentenary of the violin, which has:

once again disrupted the codes of the classical scene,
for the first time brought internationally renowned musicians to the Victoria Hall stage accompanied by a famous graffiti artist, for a live painting performance inspired by the repertoire being played,
magnified Tchaikovsky's violin concerto and Beethoven's symphonies, while leaving room for improvisations,
taken the audience on a journey of sounds, images and meaning,

…for a unique show leading to a private auction of the works created on stage.

A concert with extraordinary artistic collaborations: Fabrizio von Arx has surrounded himself with the best of the international classical scene, not to mention Swiss (even if by adoption), with:

Our Festival

2020

Festival des Bastions

Created in the spring of 2020 by Fabrizio von Arx as a counterpoint to the health crisis and cultural gloom induced by COVID, the first edition of Festival des Bastions was intended to be a breath of fresh air for the local and international arts scene, as well as for audiences.

By taking over the rotunda of the Café-Restaurant des Bastions, one of the first music kiosks in the city of Geneva, this new festival aims to make it the most coveted stage of the summer: one that de-compartmentalises classical music and makes it accessible to as many people as possible, through simplicity, togetherness and virtuosity.

In summary, each annual edition of the Festival offers: