Audemars Piguet As New Global Partner of the Montreux Jazz Festival

AUDEMARS PIGUET AS NEW GLOBAL PARTNER OF THE MONTREUX JAZZ FESTIVAL

Le Brassus, 28 November 2018 – Audemars Piguet and the Montreux Jazz Festival are delighted to announce their new partnership starting in 2019. Audemars Piguet will become Global Partner of the Festival alongside AccorHotels. Creators of exceptional (hi)stories and legendary moments, Audemars Piguet and the Montreux Jazz Festival put heritage and innovation at the heart of their savoir-faire.

The partnership between Audemars Piguet and the Montreux Jazz Festival stems from a natural evolution extending the Manufacture’s ongoing collaboration and strong relationship with the Montreux Jazz Festival.

Since 2010, the Manufacture joined the Claude Nobs Foundation and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) in the Montreux Jazz Digital Project. This massive project enabled the digitalisation, restoration and preservation of the Festival’s entire sound archives, acknowledged by UNESCO as part of its “Memory of the World.” This collection contains more than 5,000 hours of concert recordings. Quincy Jones has described this unique collection as “the most important testimonial to the history of music, covering jazz, blues and rock.” The Montreux Jazz Digital Project is perfectly aligned with Audemars Piguet’s quest for innovation and endeavour to maintain watchmaking heritage and tradition in its birthplace, the Vallée de Joux.

Mathieu Jaton, Chief Executive Officer of the Montreux Jazz Festival is pleased to announce this partnership: “We are delighted to pursue a common history, which began years ago. As Global Partner, Audemars Piguet will accompany us all year long, in Switzerland and throughout the world.”

This partnership extends to all the Festival’s entities, including the Montreux Jazz Café restaurants, the Montreux Jazz Festival Japan and the Montreux Jazz Artists Foundation. The Foundation supports tomorrow’s artists notably through the Montreux Jazz Academy and the Montreux Jazz Talent Awards.

This new collaboration testifies as well to Audemars Piguet and the Montreux Jazz Festival’s shared passion for excellence and the creation of emotions. Music is the universal language of emotions. It touches the hearts of all beyond age categories and genres and provides an endless source of inspiration. In this quest, the Manufacture defies conventions to share its love of Haute Horlogerie through unique human experience. Its timepieces allying traditional savoir-faire and technological advancements communicate this passion for excellence, precision and technical artistry via strong human emotions.

This partnership with the Montreux Jazz Festival extends Audemars Piguet’s long-standing attachment to the world of music. In 2005, on the occasion of Jay-Z’s 10th Roc-A-Fella Records anniversary, Audemars Piguet and Jay-Z collaborated on a limited edition of the Royal Oak Offshore. In 2009, the Manufacture presented the Millenary Quincy Jones limited edition, a watch also symbolising the larger collaboration between Audemars Piguet and the internationally- renown musical producer and director on Project Q, which raised awareness on young people’s need for self-expression and self-fulfilment.

Fascinated by music, François-Henry Bennahmias, Audemars Piguet’s Chief Executive Officer, intimately rejoices over the new partnership with the Montreux Jazz Festival: “At last,” he sings, paying tribute to Etta James, “my love has come along.” “At last … I found a dream that I could speak to. A dream that I can call my own.” Adding music to its strategy, Audemars Piguet announces the development of new projects in the coming year.

“To break the rules, you must first master them.”

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About Audemars Piguet Audemars Piguet is the oldest fine watchmaking manufacturer still in the hands of its founding families (Audemars and Piguet). Since 1875, the company has written some of the finest chapters in the history of Haute Horlogerie, including a number of world firsts. In the Vallée de Joux, at the heart of the Swiss Jura, numerous masterpieces are created in limited series embodying a remarkable degree of horological perfection, including daring sporty models, classic and traditional timepieces, splendid ladies’ jewellery-watches, as well as one-of-a-kind creations. www.audemarspiguet.com

About the Montreux Jazz Festival Founded in 1967 by Claude Nobs, the Montreux Jazz Festival takes place over 2 weeks each summer in Switzerland. With ambitious programming choices and a savoir-faire forged in the hospitality industry, the Montreux Jazz Festival offers a haven of peace to both artists and public, where time seems to stop, as the most improbable encounters become reality. The Festival draws more than 250,000 visitors each year to the shores of Lake Geneva for concerts of renowned acoustics and numerous free-access events. In Montreux, the intimacy that encourages improvisation remains a top priority. Proximity between the biggest artists and their audiences results in unique concerts and memorable moments. While jazz and blues are at the roots of this event, other styles of music quickly found their place, leading to artistic encounters between generations of musicians and unique experiences. Montreux has thus seen historic performances by artists including Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Marvin Gaye, Prince, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie, and Stevie Wonder. The festival will celebrate its 53rd edition from June 28 to July 13, 2019. www.montreuxjazzfestival.com