Loyal fans ensure success not only at the Greenfield Festival
Published: Wednesday, Jun 12th 2024, 11:10
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When alphorns sound between Lakes Brienz and Thun on Thursday afternoon, it's an unmistakable sign: The Greenfield Festival is starting and with it the open-air festival season. The tried-and-tested festivals will be successful in 2024.
Alphorns? At the Greenfield? "The alphorn players fit the opening of the Greeenfield Festival like a glove," writes the festival itself on its homepage. Because what follows until Sunday sounds completely different: loud guitars, heavy metal and punk. For example, the British metalcore band Bring Me The Horizon or Kraftclub from Chemnitz in Germany with garage rock, rap and indie or Feine Sahne Fischfilet, the uptempo punk rockers against the right.
Clear line
Fans of Greenfield have known it for a long time: first the alphorn and then it's down to business. The festival is also counting on its loyal fans. Advance sales are "at the same level as last year", according to those responsible when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency. In 2023, as in the previous year, 84,000 visitors attended Greenfield. A record both times. According to the festival, the recipe for success is a clear line in terms of content.
Others can only dream of such success at the moment. Bernese dialect rocker Gölä, for example, had actually wanted to kick off this year's festival season from June 7 to 9. He had planned a three-day anniversary festival in Buochs NW, but had to cancel his Earthbeat party due to insufficient demand.
As early as 2018, fears of a festival dying out were rife on the scene - oversaturation was the buzzword. Then came corona and rising energy prices in the wake of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. Nevertheless, the Swiss Music Promoters Association (SMPA), the industry association for professional Swiss concert, show and festival promoters, is now saying that the festival industry is generally in good shape.
More expensive tickets
According to the SMPA, price increases since coronavirus could have been absorbed through more efficient processes and higher ticket prices. However, the industry association has some reservations. According to the association, audiences are flocking to the tried-and-tested Swiss open air festivals. "Newer and sometimes smaller festivals are currently struggling" - like Gölä.
In any case, Greenfield is one of the "tried and tested Swiss open air festivals", but is a rather small festival compared to the big ones in terms of audience. One of the two really big ones starts at the beginning of July: the Montreux Jazz Festival (05.-20.07.) attracts around 250,000 visitors over 16 festival days. Around the same number make the pilgrimage to Nyon for the Paléo (23-28.07.) The latter announced an "absolute record" for this year's 47th edition in March: the 200,000 tickets on sale sold out within 21 minutes. During the festival, a further 1500 tickets are sold every day for the same evening.
With around 160,000 visitors, the Frauenfeld Openair (11-13.07.) and the Gurten Festival (17-20.07.) on Bern's local mountain and the Gampel Openair (15-18.08.) in Valais each attract just under 100,000. When asked, both Frauenfeld and Gurten state that ticket sales are on track. "With the start of the festival summer and the rising temperatures, we will be able to reach our target again this year," says Openair Frauenfeld, for example.
Great variety
But the Gurten Festival and Openair Frauenfeld are also talking about "challenges". "Post-pandemic, inflation, the general world situation - it's hitting everyone hard," says the Gurten Festival.
It is probably against this background that the Zürich Openair is breaking new ground this year. The festival will only last four days, one day less than last year. And it will take place on two weekends (August 23 and 24 and August 30 and 31), only on Fridays and Saturdays. The festival does not want to comment on its ticket sales in advance. But: "We've been very satisfied so far, we're happy to say that," they say on request. Just over 100,000 visitors attended in 2022, but last year a thunderstorm thwarted the organizers' plans. The Zurich Openair had to be canceled and evacuated on one evening.
The Zürich Openair does not want to talk about oversaturation due to too many festivals. It is one of those that brings the open-air festival season to a close at the end of August. "The variety and number of festivals offers music lovers a wide choice, which is a positive thing. So everyone can find something to suit them."
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