50 Summers Of Music

50th anniversary book for the Montreux Jazz Festival

400 pages, 175 photographs, 60 stories

Texts by Arnaud Robert

Preface by Mathieu Jaton, CEO of the Montreux Jazz Festival

June 1967: on Lake Geneva, Switzerland, a ball of energy named Claude Nobs embarks on one of the most exciting musical adventures of our time. Fifty years later, the story of the Montreux Jazz Festival is told by those who made it. The voice of Nina Simone, the trumpet of Miles Davis and the guitar 
of B.B. King echo through these candid recollections by people like Quincy Jones, Carlos Santana and Lenny Kravitz. Sixty stars relive highlights in the history of live music, a history that Montreux is still writing. Their words are echoed in 175 photographs, many previously unpublished, which capture this legendary festival, both backstage and onstage. A half century of emergencies, of unbelievable stories, and of incandescent beauty. A half century of audiovisual recording archives now registered as a World Heritage by UNESCO.

This story, which is still being written, is presented through nearly 200 photographs. Mostly never before published, these images bring this legendary festival to life, on stage and behind the scenes. This book does not claim to tell “the beautiful history” of this unique festival. It leaves that to the artists.