MONROE — When the Monroe Swiss Singers held its first Swissfest in November 1963, the 19 charter members at that time probably never dreamed the event would still be going strong 55 years later with a membership of over 40 singers.
Although some of the faces in both the mixed choir and the audience have changed, the Monroe Swiss Singers’ annual trademark event remains synonymous with quality Swiss folk music and entertainment, all for the sake of carrying on the traditions and culture brought to Monroe and south-central Wisconsin by its Swiss forbearers.
Marking the 52nd annual Swissfest, the event will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday in the grand hall of Turner Hall in Monroe, 1217 17th Ave. Sharing the stage and program are two other Green County staples, the Männerchor New Glarus and the New Glarus Yodel Club. Alphorns, accordions, Swiss-coin rolling, Swiss flag-throwing and yodeling, all perennial favorites, will again be part of the show.
Special acts this year will include the Squeezebox Night Players, a group of accordionists led by Del Heins who are part of Turner Hall’s Squeezebox Night, a monthly informal jam session held in the Ratskeller as part of Turner Hall’s Swiss Heritage Series. Also appearing will be a father-daughter performance by veteran accordionist Henry Blumer and vocalist and Monroe Swiss Singers member, Julie Blumer. Mary Zimmerman and Lynn Liechti, also of the Monroe Swiss Singers, will sing a song once recorded by Roger Bright, Yodeling Through Life, accompanied by accordionist John Waelti. In addition to Swiss folk music, the program will include the Monroe Swiss Singers performing Edelweiss as a remembrance of Gottlieb Brändli Sr., Carol Saunders Benson and Trudi Thomann, three members of the Monroe Swiss Singers who have passed on since the last Swissfest.
Monroe has had a long history of Swiss choral groups, primarily men’s yodel quartets and choirs, dating from the late 1800s. The immediate predecessor of the Monroe Swiss Singers was the Swiss Club Men’s Chorus, which was established in 1958. Due to dwindling membership, female voices were added in February 1963 and the group came to be known as the Gemischter Chor Monroe. In 1968, the name was officially changed to the Monroe Swiss Singers. Of the original 19 charter members, all of whom except one were native Swiss, three are still singing with the group. Deborah Krauss Smith, whose paternal grandmother was a Swiss native from canton Aargau, has directed the group since 1985. Previous directors included Edwin Schuetze (1963–1966), Christian Gafner (1966–1971), Betty Koehler (1971–1976) and Marie Power (1976–1985). The group has won many first-place awards in competition singing, performs at area events, and has accepted invitations to perform at places such as Daley Plaza in Chicago; Folklore Village in Dodgeville, Wisconsin; the Berne Heritage Festival in Berne, Indiana; the Holy Cross Sisters 100th Anniversary in Merrill, Wisconsin; and numerous times at Oakwood Village — University Woods in Madison. The group is also a member of the North American Swiss Singing Alliance, and participates in NASSA’s triennial Swiss singing festival and competition, the next of which will be held in Edmonton, Canada in 2021.
General seating tickets are available in advance through Saturday at Turner Hall’s Ratskeller Restaurant or at Orange Kitten Yarns on the north side of Monroe’s Square, or at the door. Grand Hall doors will open at 1:30 p.m. The Ratskeller Restaurant in the lower level of Turner Hall will be open following the program, featuring a variety of Swiss entrées as well as American favorites.
More information is available at www.TurnerHallofMonroe.org.
