Rolex launches “Perpetual Music” concerts to support musicians and singers

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected people in various ways, among one of the many groups affected are singers and musicians. Rolex understands this and will be organising three concerts to support singers and musicians that have had their livelihoods adversely affected by COVID-19.

Titled "Perpetual Music", the concerts will be held in Italy, Germany and France from Aug 21 to Sep 3. They will also stream online for free.

This initiative will involve approximately 100 artists whose work and lives have been affected by the pandemic. The performers will also benefit from worldwide visibility through these concerts. It also ties in with the brand’s desire to keep music as an essential part of our daily lives during these unprecedented times. 

At each concert, one of three Rolex Testimonees will introduce the repertoire and perform solo or in various ensembles. They are Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Flórez known for his expressive singing and virtuosity, Bulgarian-Swiss operatic soprano Sonya Yoncheva who performs at the world’s greatest opera houses, and lyric tenor Rolando Villazón who is also a successful stage director, novelist, TV and radio personality.

Joining them is French violinist Renaud Capuçon. He is known internationally as a major soloist, recitalist and chamber musician and also participated in organising this initiative. All the performers were handpicked by the four world-renowned artists and will be paid for their work.

Concert schedule

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The first concert led by tenor Juan Diego Flórez will be held in Persaro, Italy at Teatro Rossini on Friday Aug 21 and will feature an orchestra. Next, operatic soprano Sonya Yoncheva (pictured) will perform in a recital programme in Berlin, Germany at the Staatsoper on Tuesday Sep 1. The last night will be at the Opéra national de Paris (Palais Garnier) in France on Thursday Sep 3. It will feature a repertoire of baroque and chamber music and both lyric tenor Rolando Villazón and violinist Renaud Capuçon will perform.

How you can watch it

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You can watch them perform for free on medici.tv, a classical music online streaming platform who has been a Rolex partner for over a decade. The concerts will be available to stream until the end of October and is expected to reach hundreds of thousands of people in over 180 countries.

Rolex’s commitment to the arts

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Arnaud Boetsch, Rolex Director of Communications & Image says, “Our aim is to support the world of music and provide the opportunity to musicians and singers to have their art live on by performing at prestigious venues with the finest acoustics.”

Encouraging exceptional performance and artistic development for nearly 50 years worldwide, the initiative is also keeping with the brand’s pursuit of excellence and long-term commitment to foster talent. Currently, Rolex is also helping to fund artists at the Metropolitan Opera in New York whose work is affected by the pandemic.