Might as well get my grumble out of my system at the start,
particularly as I enjoyed much of the photography, most of the
locations and all the musical arrangements. It is just that
the title could be deemed misleading as only two Chapters of
the thirteen are not of Switzerland and two of the remaining
eleven are not focused on Zurich. No problem though about the
preponderance of Zurich.
Switzerland has existed as the world’s oldest democracy for
some seven hundred years. It is the most linguistically and
culturally diverse western European nation. Its diversity derives
from its history; having experienced internal religious conflict,
the Congress of Vienna guaranteed independence and neutrality
in 1815. A new federal state of Cantons was formed in 1848 with
Bern as the capital. The Cantons reflect cultural and linguistic
variety. With borders with France, Germany and Italy these are
the appropriate languages of the population who usually speak
at least two along with English. The Romantsch dialect is also
spoken by about one percent of its people. Zurich is the largest
city, located at the north-western end of Lake Zurich, and has
long been the industrial and banking centre of the country as
well as a magnet for tourism. Its history includes being a centre
of Protestantism.
It is on Zurich that the opening Chapters focus with views of
the city streets at night dressed in resplendent Christmas decorations
(CH.1). In the daylight, dusted in snow with a misty hue, the
city looks less inviting albeit the bridge over the river Lammat
and the mighty twin towers of the Cathedral are imposing (CH.2).
The tradition of Christmas is central in December and the film
visits the mechanical Father Christmas, a wonderful Christmas
crib and the various toyshops with captivated children peering
through the windows (CHs. 3-5). The great Minster, in all its
internal magnificence appears to the melody of God Rest Ye
Merry Gentlemen played in a baroque manner (CH.6). After
brief visits to the Toy Museum in Nuremberg, a city well known
as the centre of the German toy-making industry (CH.8), it’s
back to Zurich to one of their leading toy emporia with a final
visit to a window display of model trains zipping around snowy
mountain scenery and model houses; captivating for the children,
and, I do not doubt, their parents (CH.13). In between these
last two visits, filming takes in a Brussels restaurant where
seafood, not just moules and frites, is being prepared and where
one can lust over the chocolates, not all Pralines (CH.10).
Swiss winter landscapes (CH.12) and the Einsieden Monastery,
an important centre of Catholic pilgrimage, are further diversions
from Zurich. The monastery church is largely baroque in form
(CH.11). The other interesting church visited is that at Engadine,
a Romantsch-speaking district set in mountains and popular with
visitors (CH.7). Both religious buildings have interesting frescoes
and murals.
Each visit throughout this tour is accompanied by Baroque-type
arrangements of mainly well-known Christmas music. Those chosen
include Good King Wenceslas, The First Nowell,
Jingle Bells, Silent Night and We Wish You
A merry Christmas. With the arrangements being based on
Baroque practice, brass is prominent but not overdone. Once
or twice, as with O Tannenbaum (CH.12) the arrangement
loses the underlying melody, for me at least.
Robert J Farr
see also review
by Byzantion
Slovak State Philharmonic/Peter Breiner 
2.110546 [52.38] 
