Montreux Jazz Heritage Lab 2: Immersive Installation at EPFL's ArtLab

The Montreux Jazz Heritage Lab 2, a permanent immersive installation, has opened at the new Montreux Jazz Café within Kengo Kuma's ArtLab at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). Developed by 15 researchers from ECAL and EPFL, the installation provides an innovative way to explore the Montreux Jazz Festival's vast digital archive, which became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2013. Users navigate over 44,000 tracks and 5,000 hours of audiovisual recordings spanning 50 years via a touch-based timeline system. The space features a curved, padded screen with diamond-shaped panels and a 32-speaker 3D audio system for on-demand listening. Materials date back to 1967, including performances by Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, and Prince. The ArtLab, designed by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, opened in November and hosts scientific and cultural activities for EPFL.