Montreux
About the Creative City:
Montreux has long made music a central element of its development strategy. Since 1967, the city, located on the shores of Lake Geneva, has hosted the Montreux Jazz Festival (MJF), which was voted as the best European festival in 2023 in the Arthur Awards. Fulfilling the inclusive nature of music through programmes such as "La Chaise Rouge" and "Tous en chœur", Montreux has demonstrated its commitment to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 10 "Reduced Inequalities". The Creative City also encourages and funds innovation and the development of local musical initiatives, such as the Chœur Oratorio, Arabesque and Fifres et Tambours associations, which helps strengthening social ties and promoting bottom-up and participative approaches.
In line with UNESCO's mandate and objectives, Montreux is committed to safeguarding its musical heritage notably with more than 5,000 hours of high-resolution digitized archives of the MJF, which constitute the largest collection of contemporary live music in the world. With this in mind, Montreux has been active in developing and implementing effective projects aimed at making the city's cultural activities sustainable, in particular through its Réenchanter la Ville programme.
Added Value:
As a Creative City of Music, Montreux is dedicated:
To ensuring the safeguarding of live music heritage with a view to laying a solid foundation for a fairer and more sustainable future;
To fostering sustainable economic development by creating synergies among various creative fields to optimize cultural development possibilities;
To supporting emerging talents and empower youth in cultural sectors, especially in the creative sector of Music;
To ensuring and facilitating access to culture for all; and
To encouraging bottom-up patterns in the field of culture through a strong support of local and community cultural initiatives.
