We didn’t cover everything by any means from SIHH 2013, just too many marvels to fully cover, but this is one of the more unusual little gems to have emerged from the show. 43 years on from the major music festival held at Max Yasgur’s 600 acre farm, this is an entirely different capitalist vision of the 3 days of peace and love that was supposed to be Woodstock. And you can bet they are going to cost beaucoup de bread, man.
Unveiled at SIHH 2013, the idea dreamt up by the Parmigiani Fleurier designers was to depict a musical scene which was not static and conventional, as literal representations often are. The guitar being an instrument with natural links to wood marquetry, it was decided to use the Union Jack and the Stars and Stripes as the backdrops thereby paying homage to the two most influential countries in the history of rock and roll.
The Tonda’s tourbillon becomes the sound box for the guitar, the idea being that watchmaking art and music become one and the instrument comes to life through the regular oscillations of the complication. Both watches are powered by the in-house PF510 hand wound movement with a 7 day power reserve.
Each marquetry dial is the result of 10 days’ work and comprises more than fifty pieces of dyed wood. These have been designed, cut and then assembled with such meticulous care that the resulting dial appears perfectly flat to the naked eye. The Tonda Woodstock’s special dial is designed with a Gibson guitar motif and an American flag in wood marquetry.
The Tonda Woodrock, the British version, and Tonda Woodstock, the American version, are two unique models suggesting where sound and image are interchangeable.
