Top players in the world of horology took time to showcase exciting new creations under the magnifying spotlight of avid collectors from near and far at the latest edition of Geneva Watch Days. Some brands ventured into innovative collaborations or considered this eclectic display of novel timepieces the ideal opportunity to present quirky designs. For others, this early autumn celebration of watchmaking ingenuity fell conveniently on landmark anniversaries and therefore represented an ideal moment for the provision of iconic new releases.
Take one of the six founding brands of the inaugural Geneva Watch Days in 2020, Breitling, which is marking 140 years since its 1884 founding. At this august congregation of the great and the good, the watchmaker introduced three new limited-edition versions of models deeply significant to its heritage that feature – in a first for a brand renowned for its aviation classics – a perpetual calendar chronograph movement. Utilised in new Premier, Navitimer and Chronomat timepieces, the in-house B19 movement boasts a solid-gold rotor for the anniversary as well as a perpetual calendar to chart the complexities of leap years and differing month lengths. An attractive moonphase display also embellishes the watches.
Each of the new iterations retains many of the features that have made the collections so desirable to watch aficionados over the years. The Premier B19 Datora 42 140th Anniversary model, for instance, has distinctive yet familiar Arabic numerals, while the Navitimer B19 Chronograph 43 Perpetual Calendar 140th Anniversary watch sports a beautiful contrast between its signature slide-rule in black and its fetching 18-carat red-gold dial. Likewise, the Super Chronomat B19 44 Perpetual Calendar 140th Anniversary comes with many of its traditional characteristics but also a skeletonised dial, marking another landmark for Breitling.
Three of the Bulgari watches at the fair encompass a disruptive musical element inspired by a collaboration with world-renowned conductor Lorenzo Viotti. The precocious musical talent has helped to craft a distinctively dissonate chiming sound for these reinvented timepieces. Their horological acoustics are achieved through a devilish musical interval known as the tritone, which offers an unsettling soundscape often harnessed by classical composers. The so-called ‘Devil’s interval’ is perfect for creating dramatic tension – plus tantalisingly alerting a watch owner to the precise time at regular intervals via this unique tonal quality.
Powered by a BVV800 manufacture manual-winding mechanical movement with Grande and Petite sonnerie, the Octo Roma Grande Sonnerie Tourbillon automatically chimes all the hours and quarters, and can be set to repeat the hours, quarters and minutes on demand. Four gongs and hammers chime the quarters in dissonant notes. For the Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon, the modified BVL428 calibre means that three notes are emitted on the quarters. Last and least complicated is the two-gong Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater Carbon. All three are crafted from different materials to create striking nuances in the chords.
Another novel collaborative effort, this time between Swiss watchmaker Gerald Charles and the world of motorcycling in the guise of Ducati, spawned an entirely new creation at Geneva, the Maestro 4.0 Ducati 30° Anniversario 916. Limited to 250 pieces, this eye-catching timepiece pays homage to the iconic Ducati 916 motorcycle, using superlight and resistant materials familiar in road racing, and displaying time on an open-worked Ducati wheel at the centre of the case. Nodding to the brand’s founder, Gérald Genta, who favoured the complication, a jumping hours calibre indicates the hours on this skeletonised wheel.
Coming in a limited run of 88 pieces, the upgraded Oil Pump model released by Jacob & Co. in Geneva retains its signature bobbing motion to imitate an oil derrick, but this visual treat can now come to life on demand via a pusher at one o’clock and lasts for a mesmerising 35 seconds. Housed in a smaller 44mm case of 18-carat rose gold and sapphire, a single-axis flying tourbillon allows for a more compact design but in no way compromises the intricately crafted effects of the gold-plated derricks, barrel and pipelines on the dial.
By releasing a new civilian version of the Type XX Chronograph in gold and ceramic, Breguet acted on stated intentions to continue to expand the line with different sizes and materials while staying true to its aviation roots. Innovations in this 42mm rose-gold model include a gold bezel with a bidirectional ring crafted out of ceramic, a substance never used before by the manufacture. The elegant sunburst blue dial has three counters with a snailed motif to add depth, and the self-winding Calibre 728 movement – realised just last year and visible through the sapphire-crystal caseback – ensures operational smoothness.
Swiss brand Carl Suchy & Söhne added to its Belvedere collection with golden-looking Champagne and deep-red Bordeaux variants, providing dazzling novel colour schemes designed to entice new admirers. A notable feature of the timepieces is the gold-plated oscillating rotor embellished with micro-engraving of the façade of Vienna’s Belvedere palace. A moving date window enhances a dial whose concave rhodium-plated indexes are filled with SuperLumiNova.
Another collaboration unveiled at Geneva was the remarkable Le Régulateur Louis Erard x Kudoke. Independent Swiss brand Louis Erard has gained a reputation over the years for partnerships that defy the norm, and joining forces with Stefan Kudoke has unleashed a timepiece in four variations evoking many signature elements of the German watchmaking maestro’s handiwork. For instance, distinctive three in-line hands on frosted or mother-of-pearl dials; a rhodium-plated railway-track chapter ring and counter rings; and typical Kudoke colour schemes are all notable features.
Blancpain took the opportunity to release new variants in the Villeret collection with a colour code inspired by the Vallée de Joux fir trees, a luscious canopy near the manufacture’s operations. The Extraplate, Quantième Complet, Quantième Phases de Lune and Tourbillon Carrousel all sport beautiful hues of green while retaining the traditional codes of the line.
Geneva Watch Days saw Favre Leuba make a bold statement by releasing, among others, six new Chief references – three for the Chief Chronograph and three for the Chief Date. The ongoing reinvigoration of the 287-year-old brand sees design reinterpretations of a modernised retro style from the 1970s melded with updated contemporary aesthetics. Also, inserted at their heart are intricate movements from Manufacture La Joux-Perret.
