Nearly 1,000 lucky music lovers stepped into a world where high horology met high voltage, and I was lucky enough to be there. In a spectacular celebration of its 150th anniversary, Audemars Piguet (Instagram) returned with its third edition of Audemars Piguet Parallel—a now-legendary concert series held during the Montreux Jazz Festival. The twist? The location, as always, was revealed at the last minute. This year’s setting was a disused thermal power plant, Centrale Thermique, in Vouvry, transformed into a celebration of sound and light. 35 minutes away from the Festival, it was was a night of Red hues, billowing smoke and incredible sound, it was unlike anything I’ve seen, or heard, before.
In the VIP lounge behind the DJ booth, I sat with friend of YUNG, Peggy Gou, Gstaad Guy and other friends of Audemars Piguet. Eva May kicked the night off and then it was on to Alex Wann, Paris’s rising deep house prodigy, who set the tone with a floor-filling set that pulsed with underground energy. He passed the baton to genre-blending Chloé Caillet, who kept bodies moving with her eclectic mix of house and techno. Closing the night was global house icon Peggy Gou, whose infectious energy and signature sound lit up the industrial space. It was a night like no other, and an experience I’ll never forgot. I’d heard Gou before, but never in such a unique, intimate environment, and it blew my mind.
The electric atmosphere mirrored the legacy of Audemars Piguet itself: timeless, innovative, and bold. “With Audemars Piguet Parallel, we continue to share our openness, passion and spirit of curiosity,” said CEO Ilaria Resta. “ … we’re thrilled to celebrate this milestone with the Montreux Jazz Festival audience.”
Mathieu Jaton, CEO of Montreux Jazz Festival, said just before the event, “We have this amazing relationship with Audemars Piguet, they’ve been our partners at the MJF for some time and it’s like a marriage. Working together on the experiences is something we’re so proud of – today we want to create an experience, a music event that’s remembered for years. We’re emotional creators, we’re looking for incredible, unforgettable experiences.” And they succeeded, the sense of anticipation and the release … it was something else.
Founded in 1875 in the Vallée de Joux, Audemars Piguet has long blurred the lines between craft and creativity. From 2010 onwards, the House has supported the MJF archives digitalization project. In 2019, Audemars Piguet became a global partner of Montreux Jazz Festival, and their connection has only deepened, giving rise to the Parallel concert series in 2022. Always intimate. Always unforgettable. In 2025, Audemars Piguet brought together brand ambassador RAYE and music producer Mark Ronson for a special collaboration on “Suzanne”—an original track inspired by their personal journeys and the Maison’s heritage. Their creative process was captured in the film Syncing Sounds 150. RAYE also took the stage at this year’s Montreux Jazz Festival.
The brand’s fusion with music doesn’t end there. From supporting rising talents through its APxMusic programme to deep collaborations with EPFL and the Claude Nobs Foundation, Audemars Piguet’s relationship with music is as intricate as its most complicated movement.
Parallel is a philosophy. It champions surprise, emotion, and craft. A creative expression of Audemars Piguet’s world, it celebrates the joy of the unexpected and the thrill of precision—whether in beats per minute or in mechanical perfection.
In a world of predictable festivals and formulaic launches, Audemars Piguet Parallel continues to raise the bar—this year, with 100,000 volts of unfiltered energy.
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