Gaudete! International Early Music Festival

An early music festival in the heart of Valsesia

The Gaudete! International Early Music Festival is one of the most refined musical events in the northern Piedmont region. Created to showcase early and Baroque repertoires, the festival radiates from the alpine scenery of the Valsesia valley in the province of Vercelli. Each year, it offers a traveling calendar of concerts and musical discussions, ranging from early music to classical, featuring prominent national and international performers.

The festival is organized by the Triacamusicale Association, under the artistic direction of Mara Colombo, and is historically based at the Sacro Monte di Varallo, a UNESCO World Heritage site and the spiritual heart of the valley. The 17th edition, titled Exaudi vocem meam: instrumental voices of light and shadow, is dedicated to the 800th anniversary of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi, a theme that weaves through the entire program with a thread of spirituality and attentive listening.

The concert at the Sacro Monte di Varallo

Among the most anticipated stops is the concert hosted in Varallo at the Basilica of Maria Vergine Assunta at the Sacro Monte. In this place where music, art, and devotion merge, the festival presents a program of grand Renaissance polyphony: the five-voice motets taken from the Canticum canticorum, Liber quartus, published by the Gardano press in Rome in 1584. The acoustics of the naves and the charm of the frescoed chapels make this event a unique listening experience.

A traveling festival through the villages of the Vercelli area

Beyond Varallo, the festival reaches numerous locations across the territory, with concerts that highlight the churches and historic architecture of the Valsesia and Upper Piedmont. The calendar spans several months, typically between spring and autumn, and features diverse programs:

• Historical high-chapel wind instruments, with repertoires exploring the contrast between light and shadow;
• Historical trumpets and organ, from Baroque courts to Romantic virtuosity;
• Sacred Renaissance polyphony performed with philological criteria.

For several years, the project has enjoyed the patronage of the Fondazione Valsesia and regional and local institutions, confirming its deep roots in the territory. The presentation of the 2026 edition took place in Varallo with a conference dedicated to Blessed Bernardino Caimi, founder of the Sacro Monte.

Why it's worth it

Gaudete! is an invitation to rediscover early music in the places for which it was conceived: the churches, basilicas, and sanctuaries of Valsesia. For those visiting Varallo and the province of Vercelli, it is an opportunity to combine the beauty of the Sacro Monte with a top-tier listening experience in an intimate and contemplative setting.