Riviera Music

Classical heritage

In actual fact, Montreux and its surrounding Riviera already had a well-established musical tradition. This had started out along classical lines, with the Kursaal offering a rich program of performances from the late 19th century onward and then composer Igor Stravinsky taking up residence in Clarens – like many wealthy foreigners who had been attracted to the region by its favorable microclimate since 1910. Two years after moving there, Stravinsky composed “The Rite of Spring”, which caused a scandal. This alone shows the power of the Riviera’s peaceful charm to inspire groundbreaking ideas. Something similar happened 50 years later when, under the picture-perfect and affable guise of the Rose d’Or entertainment awards, organized by broadcaster Télévision Suisse Romande (TSR), Montreux opened its doors to the future rebellious royalty of rock and pop. The Rolling Stones are a notable example, performing in 1964 while still in their well-behaved boyhood phase, in their first appearance outside the UK. And it was Claude Nobs who came to pick them up from the airport... Of course, the collective energy that brought the Montreux Jazz Festival to life and gave an entire region such a unique musical aspiration was not the work of one person alone. The festival also owes a lot to the organizational skills of pianist Géo Voumard and journalist René Langel. Yet the fact that this gamble paid off was thanks to the audacity, social skills and acumen of the Territet-born Nobs, with support from the Montreux tourist office where he worked at the time. As a result, from 1967 this sleepy tourist lakeside resort started attracting a new kind of visitor – long-haired youths drawn by the festival and famous artists from the blues, jazz, and British and American music scenes, and later by the “Superpop” concerts organized by Nobs at the Casino throughout the year. “I was living in Geneva, but Montreux was the place to be,” says drummer Alain Rieder, recalling his rock-crazy teenage years. “No other town of that size in Europe was attracting such big names: Pink Floyd, Zappa, Yes, Wings, Led Zeppelin! The first concert I went to was Black Sabbath. In the parking lot, there were cars with license plates from all over Switzerland, and even from France, Italy, Germany... Jimi Hendrix was meant to perform but he died before he got the chance to play in Montreux.” It was during a Frank Zappa concert that a fire broke out in the Casino, an incident that would inspire Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water”.

The Warner Music connection

There was another aspect to Claude Nobs that is less talked about: In 1973, still riding on the back of his friendship with the Ertegün brothers, the director of the Montreux Jazz Festival became the European representative for Warner Music, which had bought Atlantic Records. This provided a real boost, as it once again put the region on the global musical map. Incidentally, he insisted on managing the record company from Montreux and vowed never to give in to the countless suggestions to relocate to the United States – a promise he kept right up until his death in 2013. “I love the Riviera too much, and artists are very happy to come here,” he said. And he was right. One evening in 2016, John Paul Jones was standing against the railing on the terrace of the Hotel Cornavin in Geneva. The Led Zeppelin bassist was gazing eastward across the lake. “That’s Montreux over there, isn’t it? For as long as I live, I’ll always remember the meal that Nobs cooked for us in his chalet, after our concert.” For all the wild exploits he had witnessed from behind the bass in one of the world’s most outrageous rock bands, the one thing he cherished the most was this impression of simple, friendly hospitality. The Montreux Jazz Festival set the tone: Like a diamond-tipped needle in the groove of a vinyl LP, it scored a deep love of music into the landscape of Lavaux. This summer, the festival will be celebrating its 60th anniversary in the newly renovated 2M2C – the Montreux Music & Convention Center – and its Auditorium Stravinski, which has played host to the likes of Bob Dylan, B. B. King, Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, Lady Gaga... the glorious list goes on. Yet while it may still be the most famous event in town, it is not the only attraction that brings both artists and audiences to the region.

Star of the studios

Off-stage, the name “Montreux” can be found printed on the back of dozens of multi-platinum records made at Mountain Studios, which started out at the new Montreux Casino in 1975 and later moved to Attalens. The fact that this was owned by Queen until 1993 is enough to demonstrate its technical prowess, which convinced the likes of AC/DC, David Bowie and the Rolling Stones to produce their albums there. The original studio is now a museum – “Queen: The Studio Experience” – dedicated particularly to the memory of Freddie Mercury, who owned several apartments in Montreux and appreciated the privacy the town offered. His statue now stands at the bottom of the town’s market square, on the shores of Lake Geneva, drawing thousands of fans and curious visitors every year.

Jazz spreads to the vineyards

Where there is one festival, others often spring up. As shown by the Cully Jazz Festival. Since 1983, it has been transforming the former district capital of Lavaux into a hive of sound, featuring not only jazz but soul, R&B and world music, and gaining fame as an international musical hub. It is no coincidence that the festival’s co-founder, Emmanuel Gétaz, worked at the Montreux Jazz Festival throughout the 1990s. The passion is contagious, and it embraces all genres: The Lavaux Classic festival has been treating the region to a classical repertoire for 20 years, staging concerts in villages, on the shores of Lake Geneva and across the steep slopes of the vineyards. In Vevey and Montreux, various current venues were born out of this musical energy that is so deeply embedded in the DNA of this little piece of Switzerland between the lake and the sky. If that were not enough to prove the region’s unique credentials, Lavaux is not listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site purely for the beauty of its unspoiled landscape. UNESCO’s “Memory of the World” register includes a digital archive of the thousands of hours of concerts at the Montreux Jazz Festival, which have been saved from oblivion thanks to the festival’s enthusiasm for technology. Since the 1970s, and with the help of TSR, the concerts have been recorded on magnetic tape, which has now been digitized and archived in a long collaborative project with EPFL (the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne). Montreux itself was named a “Creative City of Music" in 2023, marking the latest milestone in its unique history – a history of sound, song and dancing that has grown from strength to strength ever since that morning when a young man from Territet dared to push open the door to a building in New York.

Nox Orae, MIGS, Emergences Musicales

The newcomers keeping the legacy alive

And now? It may have taken some nerve to launch a festival back when they were still an exotic novelty, but it still takes courage to create new ones now that there are so many musical gatherings on offer. The only way to survive is to offer something unique. 

Nox Orae, the oldest of the new generation of festivals, has gone for a cult, avant-garde approach, exploring retro sounds while also looking to the future. Since 2010, over a weekend in August, this open-air event has been inviting top bands from the English-speaking music scene to perform to a niche but loyal enthusiastic audience in La Tour-de-Peilz, close to the lake. The Jardin Roussy park has now welcomed a stream of alternative rock legends, including the Jesus and Mary Chain, the Happy Mondays, the Flaming Lips, Swans and the Brian Jonestown Massacre, along with up-and-coming names such as Warpaint, Ty Segall and – in 2025 – Viagra Boys.

The Montreux International Guitar Show (MIGS), established in 2022, has brought music back to Montreux Casino in the best way: as a guitar fair and showcase open to everyone from professional musicians to curious amateurs to families. With a program of prestigious concerts, workshops and conference sessions, this fun springtime event has won visitors over with its combination of accessibility and originality. More than 70 electric and acoustic guitar makers, along with manufacturers of pedals and amps, have instantly been captivated by the venue’s historical musical legacy. “When I got off the train in Montreux, I had tears in my eyes,” admitted an otherwise tough-looking Dutch luthier, who was brought up on the sounds of the MJF.

Finally, the Emergences musicales lives up to its name in promoting emerging musical talent. In 2023, up in the heights of Caux, this event recreated the concept of the “Rencontres d’Astaffort” songwriting workshops and musical gatherings launched by French singer Francis Cabrel in his home village in Lot-et-Garonne. As the pioneer of this idea, Cabrel was present for the inaugural edition, which combined musical sessions with concert performances in the enchanting setting of the Caux Palace. He returned for the third edition in 2025, once again surrounded by eager young artists keen to seek his advice, which demonstrates how this concept has been successfully transferred to the Riviera in a way that is perfectly in tune with its musical history.

Buzz

When superstars get the whole planet buzzing about the Riviera

Everyone knows that the best way to generate publicity is by letting others do it for you. The most famous ambassadors of jazz, blues and pop on the Riviera have often been musicians who have loved playing there and are more than happy to give it their heartfelt endorsement in return. So even if your name is Prince and you have been everywhere and seen everything there is to see, you can still be struck by the beautiful landscape of Lavaux and maybe even inspired to write a song about it! Prince released his funky little ode to the region, the logically titled “Lavaux”, in 2010 after his second visit to the Montreux Jazz Festival. "Take me to the vineyards of Lavaux, wanna see the mountains where the waters flow. Life back home depresses me…." We completely agree!

The region even got an unexpected promotional boost back in 1968 thanks to a giant postcard in the form of an LP by Bill Evans. Recorded at the second edition of the festival, his live album At the Montreux Jazz Festival was a global hit and also drew particular attention to Chillon Castle, which was pictured on the cover. Similarly, in 1995, Queen’s 15th and final album Made in Heaven was a tribute not only to the voice of Freddie Mercury following his death, but also to Lake Geneva, looking equally majestic on the record sleeve.

Times have changed since then. In this age of the internet, social media is regularly filled with images of stars strolling along or swimming in the lake before and after concerts. In recent years, artists such as Rita Ora, Sam Smith (pictured in a boat with Shania Twain and a glass of champagne), Jon Batiste, Woodkid, Dua Lipa, Lil Nas X, Raye, Luvcat and more have all sent their own picture postcards to the world from the shores of Lake Geneva. But none of them have had quite the impact of those shots of Benson Boone jumping into the lake from the main stage at the second open-air event in 2025, having barely finished singing his last note! News of this utterly unexpected and impeccably timed plunge into the water spread all around the world. “Mark my words: in the next 10 years, I am going to live in Montreux!” vowed the singer in an Instagram post. We’re waiting for you, Benson.