Folk dancing is an extremely varied Swiss custom. Most folk dancers in Switzerland are organised into associations: dance enthusiasts come together to maintain the community. What's more, it's easier to dance in a well-rehearsed group. Both in the folk dance groups of the National Federation of Swiss Costumes (FNCS) and in the folk dance circles organised within the Swiss Association of Folk Dance Clubs (ASV), the emphasis is not on performances at public events, but on regular group dancing.
From the 1930s onwards, the pioneers of Swiss folk dancing set out to gather the last remnants of Swiss folk dance heritage, develop a repertoire of Swiss folk dances and pass it on. In addition to figures from French-speaking Switzerland and Zurich, two women from Basel also made a significant contribution to the revival of the Swiss folk dance tradition: Hanny Christen, originally from the Basel region, collected countless melodies, fragments of folk dances, poems and descriptions of customs in various regions of Switzerland. Annelis Aenis-Bitterli, originally from Basel-Stadt, choreographed a large number of new Swiss folk dances, including the 74 dances she compiled in the “Suite Bâloise”. These dances are still performed today by numerous groups throughout Switzerland and are considered an important contribution to the foundation of Swiss folk dance tradition.
