Open Air Gampel cuts concerts as festival reinvents itself

Open Air Gampel is introducing shorter concerts, a more compact layout and activities including yoga and fitness after two financially difficult years and declining beer consumption among younger visitors, SRF reported.

The Swiss music festival is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. Some concerts will now last only 45 minutes, while the two main stages will stand next to each other. The programme also includes bicycle karaoke, yoga and fitness, shifting the event towards games, sport and social activities alongside music.

“If you want to survive in the festival market, you have to question yourself massively,” media director Olivier Imboden told SRF. He said audiences had different expectations and needs than in the past.

Health awareness among younger people is rising, while alcohol consumption is falling. Imboden said beer sales at the festival had dropped by more than half and that heavy drunkenness was now practically a thing of the past. Visitors increasingly wanted games, entertainment and sport, he said.

Organisers are also under financial pressure because people are buying tickets later, making planning more difficult. At the same time, international acts are demanding higher fees as they rely more heavily on live performances for income in the streaming era. Imboden said the festival’s finances were reasonably stable and that breaking even was realistic for the anniversary year.

The festival opened with only Valais acts, including Genderbüebu, despite three quarters of its audience coming from German-speaking Switzerland. Imboden said audiences wanted to celebrate with Valais. SRF music editor Claudio Landolt described the decision as popular and understandable, noting that it used the region’s image and the growing popularity of folk music while likely costing less than bringing in bands from the United States.

Landolt said the changes were a continuation of the festival’s established character. Open Air Gampel had shifted towards a fairground-style party years ago, he said, although music acts remained its main attractions.

Imboden said he was confident about the festival’s future in Valais but did not rule out radical changes. He pointed to a festival in Germany that has no bands at all and said high fees charged by major acts were exhausting the industry.