After several years of studies, development and construction, the 2M2C, the Montreux Music & Convention Centre, has been handed over to the Municipality of Montreux and its operator.
More than a technical refurbishment, the project was shaped by a strong architectural ambition: to reinvent a legacy and ensure that this landmark building on the Vaud Riviera remains firmly rooted in contemporary cultural, conference and event uses.
Built from 1973 onwards and expanded in several successive phases, the 2M2C had a complex layout shaped by decades of extensions and adaptations. This heterogeneity became an opportunity for the project.
The founding concept, “a separate entrance for each venue”, now structures the entire building. Each event space has its own entrance, foyer and services, allowing several events of different scales to take place simultaneously without interfering with one another. This new organisation increases the site’s flexibility and meets the current needs of operators, organisers and visitors.
The intervention also provided an opportunity to fundamentally rethink the building’s relationship with its exceptional setting. New openings, glazed circulation routes and terraces strengthen the dialogue between the interior spaces, Lake Geneva and the Alps, making the landscape an integral part of the architectural experience.
As Marc Fischer, architect and managing partner at CCHE Lausanne SA, explains: “We worked with the building’s eclectic configuration and used the project to reorient the building, opening every level onto the lake and reconnecting it with its surroundings.”
The transformation also included a complete upgrade of the technical infrastructure, significant improvements in energy performance, new reception areas and more flexible event spaces. Particular care was taken to preserve the site’s landmark features, especially the Stravinski Auditorium, while bringing the building up to contemporary standards. The 2M2C is now ready to begin a new chapter with the return of the Montreux Jazz Festival in summer 2026 for its 60th edition.
Further reading
RTS - The 2M2C completes its major renovation and is ready to host the Montreux Jazz Festival
24Heures - Saved from the floodwaters but overlooking Lake Geneva, Montreux’s 2M2C reopens its doors
