As saxophone supremo Charles Lloyd pushes out a cascade of soaring notes, jazz aficionados in Montreux sway in rapture.

The legendary American musician was back on stage at the opening of this year's Montreux Jazz Festival, half a century after he headlined the first festival in the idyllic Swiss town in 1967.

He was followed by fabled jazz pianist Monty Alexander, who first played Montreux in 1976, and who returned to revisit the celebrated recording he made on that occasion called "Montreux Alexander".