Hof Zuort

The more recent history of the hamlet of Zuort was greatly influenced by the Dutch conductor and composer Willem Mengelberg. Inspired by his admired friend Gustav Mahler, he had a chalet built in 1911, designed by him and richly decorated by Swiss carvers. In 1920, he bought the farm and the land of the estate. In addition, around 1924, he built a chapel in block construction with a carillon - a distinct Dutch speciality. It features 15 bells from the Rüetschi bell foundry in Aarau, which are operated via a keyboard and, since 2022, mechatronically.

With Mengelberg's death in 1951, the estate passed to the Willem-Mengelberg-Foundation, which operated the farm as an inn and the chalet as an artist's summer residence. During Mengelberg's lifetime and after his death in 1951, the carillon was played in the summer by Ellie Heemskerk until 1984, who for many years was the first violinist in the Concertgebouw orchestra.

In 2010, Peter Robert Berry IV, MD, acquired the hamlet of Zuort. Since 2012, the farm and the Chasa Mengelberg have achieved the prestigious status of Swiss Historic Hotel. It is the declared goal of the philanthropist owner that this historic hamlet with its buildings and 16 hectares of land remains a sustainably managed estate, open to the public.

The cultural past is enjoying a renaissance in Zuort. The buildings and infrastructure have been carefully renovated, and the most recent project is the restoration of the historic carillon by the very old bell foundry Rüetschi. The chimes have been tuned, fitted with magnetic hammers and control-electronics. In addition, the carillon was mechatronically upgraded so that it can be controlled via internet and also played directly like an electric piano. Various melodies – partly compositions by Mengelberg himself, but also works by other composers and a children's song from Vnà – have been programmed. A creative vernissage is planned for early next summer in Zuort.