My Montreux Years

© Colin Muirhead

July 2026 sees the 60^th edition of one of the world’s most popular festivals for jazz – and indeed for music in general: the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland.  When Claude Nobs founded the festival back in 1967, he could never have imagined that musicians from across the world would still be travelling en masse to the tranquil shores of Lake Geneva nearly 60 years later.  And for those of us living in north east England, there is an added gloss this year with the debut appearance at the festival of local band Knats.

My relationship with the Montreux Jazz Festival started back in 1995.  At that time I was still getting in jazz, having started listening to it on the radio whilst working in the US in the early 1990s.  After returning to the UK, I wanted to discover more about jazz and decided to kill two birds with one stone: by having a relaxing holiday overseas and attending a jazz festival at the same time.  And where better to do so than in Montreux?

Truth be told, I knew little about the town before my first holiday there.  Having previously visited the German-speaking part of Switzerland, I had an image of Alpine meadows, coolish temperatures and coolish temperaments.  How wrong I was!  I arrived in Montreux on a blazing hot summer evening to discover an exhilarating atmosphere: lots of people bustling around the various venues and bars along the lakeside as the sun went down.  Was this really Switzerland?  Well, yes it was.  I soon surmised that this French-speaking part of the country might have more in common with the South of France than with the Bernese Oberland or cuckoo clocks.

That first evening was topped off by my first concert at the jazz festival.  I had heard of Yellowjackets from my time in the US, but this was the first time I had seen them live.  I was totally blown away.  Russ Ferrante, Bob Mintzer, Jimmy Haslip and Will Kennedy drew me into their compelling and enticing world of contemporary jazz, and I knew this was where I wanted to be.  After years of searching, I had found the music that I would grow to love more and more.

I soon discovered that France was not the only country with a major influence on Montreux.  One Sunday afternoon, I took a trip on the lake on the ‘Bahia Boat’, hoping to hear some sweet bossa nova from a small combo playing in the lounge of a vintage steamer.  However, there was a problem: most of the people on the boat – many of whom appeared to be Brazilians – had come, not for the bossa nova but for samba.  Consequently, the pleasant bossa music was drowned out by a continual THUD! THUD! THUD! as the partygoers on the top deck jumped up and down in unison to the drums of a samba band. Indeed, the ceiling of the lounge visibly moved in time with the jumping crowds above me!  So, I called it a day with the bossa nova and stepped outside to admire the beautiful scenery surrounding the lake.  Again, not what I had expected in Switzerland.

© Colin Muirhead

Nevertheless, I had a wonderful holiday enjoying the sun, scenery and music, and decided to return the following year, and the year after, and the year after ....  I took the photo (left) during a parade through the streets of Montreux in 1996, to mark the 30^th edition of the festival.  Once again, everyone was having a great time, as they had the evening prior to the parade when Quincy Jones led a star-studded concert to mark his 50 years in music.  Indeed, Quincy was particularly busy that year, hosting a session a few days earlier to mark the release of a series of US postage stamps honouring jazz musicians, with Sue Mingus, Ravi Coltrane, Tommy LiPuma and others on stage.  That event took place during a very long evening: Quincy was preceded by Horace Silver and followed by McCoy Tyner and Michael Brecker – who were in turn followed (at 1.00 am) by George Benson.  And, by George, he was intent on giving the rapt concertgoers their money’s worth!  By the time I left the auditorium at 2.20 am, George still had several hits to play and many in the crowd were dancing and clapping.  I do like George and his music, but my stamina had been well and truly sapped.

© Colin Muirhead

Concerts running late into the night were a common occurrence during my Montreux years, but I really didn’t mind.  Being in the same room as the likes of Herbie Hancock, Diana Krall, João Gilberto, Dianne Reeves, Gonzalo Rubalcaba and many others as they created musical magic was exhilarating.  Plus, the many ‘workshops’ organized by the festival – in truth, Q&A sessions for the most part – gave me the chance to speak with the likes of Marcus Miller, Joe Sample and (shown in the photo left) David Sanborn.  Added to which, I enjoyed exploring the picturesque hills and towns surrounding Montreux.  I always looked forward to my annual holiday there.

In all, I visited the festival 13 times.  My last visit, in 2012, was the most memorable, principally for personal reasons that I outline in my book The Montreux Years.  But two key events at the festival that year stick in my mind.  Firstly, a great concert by my favourite musician, Pat Metheny, together with his quartet of Chris Potter on sax, Ben Williams on bass and Antonio Sánchez on drums.  Secondly, seeing Claude Nobs on stage introducing veteran pianist George Gruntz.  Nobody could have guessed this at the time, but six months later Claude and George would die within a day of each other.

From what I can gather, the Montreux Jazz Festival is continuing to thrive and attract huge musical names, even if the number of jazz artists taking part has fallen.  However, the passing of Claude Nobs and many of the musicians I saw at the festival made me think it was time to move on.  Nevertheless, Montreux will always hold a special place in my heart, and my book pays homage to the festival and my time there.

I would like to send my very best wishes to Knats for their gig on July 13.  And, to anyone who has not already done so, I do hope you’ll make it to the Montreux Jazz Festival one of these years! Colin Muirhead

The Montreux Years (ISBN: 9781790812028) is available in Kindle and paperback formats from Amazon.