The Montreux Jazz Festival is one of the oldest in Europe. It was founded in 1967 by Claude Nobs, a Montreux tourism office director. The very first festival already, featuring stars like Charles Lloyd and Keith Jarrett, was a huge success. Moreover, Nobs persuaded Aretha Franklin to sing for the first time in Europe, too. Soon Montreux became a gathering spot of the world jazz enthusiasts, featuring Ray Charles, Miles Davis, David Bowie, Massive Attack and many more music luminaries. Also Quincy Jones has adorned this constellation of stars more than just once. Montreux is not only jazz, however. Step by step, a variety of other styles have entered festival programs. Be it a large or a small stage, a club, a cafe or just a street corner - any place where music is being played, always attracts swarms of listeners. Beautiful scenery of Montreux adds even more enjoyment, forming a perfect setting for the festival events. Festival stars, for their part, however, may sometimes be both splendor and despair of the organizers. Miles Davis, for example, requested to provide him with Ferrari once. In the morning, as a vehicle was duly delivered to the hotel's threshold, Miles came out and exclaimed: "Well, but why it's red?!" On another occasion, festival organizers received a phone call from the local police station. Some woman had been detained for disturbing peace at night - she had been singing at the lake! A peace-breaker turned out to be Sarah Vaughan, an outstanding American jazz singer. "The weather was lovely, and I felt like singing a little," she said...
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