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Away from the Fairways | TEE TIME

TRANSLATE TIME INTO MUSIC

F.P.Journe Sonnerie Souveraine HKGOLFER.COM

SONNERIE SOUVERAINE IS PERHAPS THE MOST MASTERFUL WATCH THAT F.P.JOURNE HAS EVER PRODUCED. HE WATCH COMBINES A TRINITY OF MUSICAL COMPLICATIONS IN SONNERIE SOUVERAINE IS PERHAPS THE MOST MASTERFUL WATCH THAT F.P.JOURNE HAS EVER PRODUCED. HE WATCH COMBINES A TRINITY OF MUSICAL COMPLICATIONS IN AN INNOVATIVE MOVEMENT THAT FOCUSES ON BEAUTY AS MUCH AS IT DOES SIMPLICITY AND DURABILITY. HK GOLFER・OCT 2018

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The Sonnerie Souveraine Caliber 1505 Movement

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f there was ever a ‘beater minute repeater’, it is the Sonnerie Souveraine. Completed in around 2005, as of 2013, only about 30 of the watches have been produced. This particular piece is F.P. Journe’s personal model, and he wears it everywhere - even if he has a different model watch he is promoting that is worn on his opposite wrist.

The Grande Sonnerie watch with a minute repeater is the most complex of horological creations, one that demands the very utmost in both technical and artistic virtuosity for the watchmaker in charge of its assembly. In the past, it has always been risky to use a Grande Sonnerie watch. The slightest error – for example, adjusting the time while the watch is chiming – could severely damage the watch’s delicate mechanisms. Therefore, the first entry in F.P.Journe’s specification book for this watch was: make the watch so that an eight-year-old child can manipulate it safely without damaging it. To meet this challenge, he had to construct a movement based on new mechanical principles. Thus, according to the brand’s motto, ten patents testify to the ‘Invenit’ of this work of watchmaking art, while the ‘Fecit’ took six years of research and development”.

The privilege of a Grande Sonnerie watch is to translate time into music. The Maison Journe

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who became an expert in the mastery of the resonance striking watch is aware of the importance of acoustic waves in the art of the time measurement. It demonstrates its mastery when it comes to retransmit time into sounds.

The sound signal emitted by the extra-flat gongs of 3/10 of a millimetre has been treated with as much importance as the function mode of this mechanism which requires a particular hammer strike. Indeed, the striking weight of the hammer of the Grande Sonnerie is of 0.3 grams. This force is, to give an estimate, between 10 and 15 times less than that used to strike a classical minute repeater.

However, because the acoustics work has been particularly meticulous and the technical solutions perfectly adapted to this type of complication, the Sonnerie Souveraine F.P.Journe produces a better sound than any equivalent

Sonnerie Souveraine’s 42mm steel case just has a12.55mm overall height

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striking timepiece. Also, a new selection mode by the 4-hour button allows you to choose between three options: Grande Sonnerie, Petite Sonnerie and Silence. The pusher at 2 o’clock activates the Minute Repeater on demand.

For such a beautiful watch, F.P.Journe has exceptionally abandoned precious metals for its cases, Gold and Platinum for a noble cause, to ensure the best possible striking tones that make optimal use of the crystalline structure of Steel.

T h e S o n n e r i e S o u v e r a i n e r e ce i v e d the Aiguille d’Or prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in 2006. It was also named Watch of the Year at the Grand Prize of Japan in 2006.

“The first entry in F.P.Journe’s specification book for this watch was: make the watch so that an eight-year-old child can manipulate it safely without damaging it.”

Sonnerie Souveraine Movement box

The back of Sonnerie Souveraine

Binaural is a recording technique performed to create a three-dimensional sound. For the binaural recording of the Sonnerie Souveraine, F.P.Journe used artificial ears with microphones. In the choice of components up to the shapes and proportions, everything is designed in this device to reproduce a sound as close as possible to human experience.

For this horological world Premiere, F.P.Journe invested the EPFL anechoic chamber in Lausanne. The EPFL is one of Switzerland’s two federal polytechnics school, and the most innovative and productive scientific institution in the world. All the walls (including the floor) of the 200 m2 anechoic chamber is entirely covered with 1-meter high glass wool dihedral, allowing an optimal absorption of sound.

To delve into the hear t of Sonnerie Souveraine mechanics, F.P.Journe’s approach was to reach the soul of this mar vel of technicality. You can discover the binaural sound of the Sonnerie Souveraine F.P.Journe on www.fpjourne.com. Remember to wear headphones to live this unique experience tr uly. It is a unique e xp erience which provides a total immersion in the heart of this exceptional striking watch’s movement.

HKGOLFER.COM

HK GOLFER・OCT 2018

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