The Montreux Jazz Festival (MJF) revealed on Tuesday the program for its 60th edition and its grand return to the 2M2C site. Headlining from July 3 to 18 are Nick Cave, Sting, RAYE, Moby, Deep Purple, The Roots, James Taylor, Van Morrison, Tyla, and Conan Gray.
“It is a special year on two fronts: we are celebrating our 60th anniversary and our return to the Congress Center,” festival director Mathieu Jaton told the media. After a two-year absence, the public will indeed rediscover the two iconic MJF venues at the newly renovated Montreux Music & Convention Center (2M2C): the Stravinski Auditorium (4621 seats) and the Montreux Jazz Lab (2293 seats).
The 2M2C will also host a 1000-seat Electro Club. While the original and daring Lake Stage disappears, the festive Lake House and other “off” stages are preserved (twelve in total and all free), allowing the festival to maintain its presence along the promenades and by the lake.
For this 2026 edition, the approximately 250,000 expected festival-goers will have a choice of 67 concerts in the two main paid venues, including 39 Swiss exclusives. The budget amounts to 30 million Swiss francs this year. In addition to the “in” concerts, a free program will be announced on June 3.
Departure in style
The first Montreux weekend starts off strong with an opening evening on Friday under the leadership of RAYE, appearing for the third time in a row. In a transformed Stravinski hall for a unique and tailor-made show, the British singer will invite several special guests to celebrate six decades of jazz, soul, and pop music, featuring her hits, unreleased collaborations, and reimagined classics.
Sting (Saturday) and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (Sunday) will complete this charismatic opening weekend. At the Lab, singer-rapper Eddy de Pretto will kick things off with the creation “Lonely Club,” combining music and contemporary dance in collaboration with choreographer Maud Le Pladec.
Moby, 30 years in the making
One of the highlights of this 60th edition, according to Mathieu Jaton, is the first appearance at the MJF of New York pop-electro artist Moby. “We’ve been waiting for him for 30 years,” he said with a smile. He will present his new album “Future Quiet” and some of his greatest hits on Wednesday, July 15.
Other highlights of the Stravinski stage include the Afro-American evening on July 11 with The Isley Brothers (a first) followed by The Roots, the American soul evening honoring Nina Simone with Joy Crookes and John Legend (9), the performance by Californian artist GIVĒON for one of his two only European dates (10), the return of Deep Purple 30 years after their first MJF (13), and the return of Italian star Jovanotti (16).
In contemporary music, PinkPantheress from the UK (6), South African artist Tyla (8), Swedish singer Zara Larsson (12), Scottish artist Lewis Capaldi (14), Californian pop phenomenon Conan Gray (7), and English rapper Loyle Carner (17) are among the featured artists.
This article has been published automatically. Source: ats
