Yodelling Unites City and Countryside in Basel

At the end of the 18th century, 80% of the Swiss population still worked in agriculture. Industrialisation in the 19th and 20th centuries changed this picture as many people moved to cities and their emerging industries.

Rural traditions also reached the cities. Many immigrants from rural areas brought yodelling to Basel, for example, where the number of clubs (yodelling societies) became so large that the city hosted the first Federal Yodelling Festival in 1924. After World War I (1914–1918) and the turbulent years that followed, there was a need for unity and shared values, and it was here that the quintessentially Swiss yodelling brought city and countryside together.

It is therefore more than symbolic that a century later, Basel is once again the venue for the Federal Yodelling Festival (Eidgenössisches Jodlerfest). “Stadt und Land mitenand ‘‘ (City and Countryside Together),  still connects the city and countryside, and in 2026, also the cantons of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft.

Although yodelling also exists in other Alpine countries, in Switzerland it reaches the highest musical level in terms of the number of practitioners, clubs, quality and modern interpretations. In December 2025, UNESCO added Swiss yodelling to its  List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

From 26 to 28 June 2026

From 26 to 28 June 2026, Basel will transform into a huge yodelling village for the first time in a century. Twelve thousand yodellers, alphorn players and flag-wavers will bring traditional Swiss customs to the urban setting of Basel.

Approximately 1,200 competition performances will take place in ten churches and concert halls. School premises in the city centre will host the alphorn and flag-waving competitions.

The yodelling village on Petersplatz, the yodelling mile along Petersgraben, and the Yodelling Hill with its alleys, squares, and courtyards stretching all the way to the market square form a festival perimeter that serves as a meeting place where visitors can mingle with participants and those from further afield and immerse themselves in the quintessentially Swiss soundscapes. The ceremony on the market square and the parade on Sunday, 28 June, are among the final acts of this great event.

Programme:

The event starts on Friday afternoon at 12:00.

Opening ceremony at Petersplatz 14:00

Evaluation performances from  14:00 Alphorn; 16:00 flag swinging; 18:30 yodelling

Saturday from 09:30 to 20:00

Sunday 10:00 Festival Ceremony on Marktplatz

14:00 Festival Parade

18:00 End of Festival

The festival badge: the Basel ‘Jodlerfest-Blaggedde’

Entry to the festival grounds is free! It is a matter of honour that visitors, as a sign of support, wear the official festival badge just like the performers – the so-called ‘Jodlerfest-Blaggedde’, which is sold for 10 francs each. Tickets on Friday (CHF 15) and Saturday (CHF 20) are required to attend the jury performances in yodelling, alphorn playing, and flag-waving at the ten performance venues. A printed programme costs CHF 12

More information on the programme, festival badge and advance ticket sales is available at www.jodlerfestbasel.ch.

Text: Maarten Koning and Jakob Mettler