The 42nd Montreux Jazz Festival takes place this year from July 4-19 on the shores of Lake Geneva.
Since it began in 1967 when it was a three-day affair, this unmissable event for music fans has become a 16-day extravaganza, headlined by jazz, blues, rock, world-music, rap, electro, pop and soul luminaries: Miles Davis, Ray Charles, Sting, B.B . King, David Bowie, Jamiroquai, Black Eyed Peas and Santana have all played here and this year has Quincy Jones, Etta James, Alicia Keys, Gnarls Barkley, Herbie Hancock, Leonard Cohen, Al Jarreau, Lenny Kravitz, Radiohead and Erykah Badu on the program.
Concerts take place in three concerts halls and there are also numerous free outdoor performances, acoustic concerts and unexpected jam sessions all over town.
What we love about it: it’s international, chic, and the setting is unsurpassed. Watching an outdoor performance on the banks of the Lake (it feels like the Riviera in summertime) with the snow-capped Alps in the background is truly magical.
