Sounds as a place of encounter

Across the Alpine routes, men and goods, armies and pilgrims have passed for centuries. Mountain passes acted as “bridges,” and mid-slope trails served as communication routes — often easier to travel than the valley floors, frequently flooded by torrents and rivers.

For the Alps have never truly been barriers, despite that romantic imagination which has long portrayed them as impassable walls.

Sounds, just like our mountains, are places of encounter, exchange, and connection. It is through Sounds that diverse musical languages can engage in dialogue. No barriers between genres — between classical and jazz, opera and pop, folk and mountain choirs — because music is universal.

This summer, for instance, during the festival’s thirtieth anniversary, at Malga Brenta Bassa, within the Adamello Brenta Nature Park (the largest protected area in Trentino), two distinct and normally distant sound worlds met, merged, and intertwined: Paolo Fresu and the Haydn Orchestra.

Fresu, one of Italy’s greatest jazz musicians, had already brought his trumpet to the Dolomites several times, performing with musicians from the Bonporti Conservatory of Trento and with Giovanni Lindo Ferretti. It was, in fact, from I Suoni delle Dolomiti that he drew inspiration for creating a similar musical experience in his hometown of Berchidda, Sardinia.

The Haydn Orchestra, a true cultural institution of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, is a cornerstone of the region’s classical and operatic music scene, with a repertoire ranging from the Baroque to contemporary compositions.

At the foot of the Brenta Dolomites, just a short distance from the Vallesinella waterfalls, Fresu and the Haydn Orchestra created a one-of-a-kind musical encounter — one of those moments worth being there for, because they can never be repeated.

That’s what I Suoni delle Dolomiti are all about: breaking down barriers and prejudices, opening up new horizons.

Just as happens when you climb higher: from above, horizons broaden.