Remembering Funky Claude

Nearly 500 people were in attendance at Montreux Convention Centre Feb. 8 for a special night to honour Claude Nobs, the founder of the city’s famous jazz festival who died Jan. 10.

“Funky Claude—Le Montreusien,” which featured performances from Amy Macdonald, Andreas Vollenweider, Barbara Hendricks, Paolo Nutini, and Stephan Eicher, was the first of a number of tributes to the popular entrepreneur.

There’s a special concert for his American friends to be held in New York later in the spring, and another special event at London’s Royal Opera House July 26-27, a week after this year’s MJF closes.

The poster for this year’s Montreux Jazz Festival (July 5-20), a painting by Brazilian artist Oscar Oiwa, also has “Merci Claude” written across it.

The 2013 Montreux lineup still hasn’t been made public.