The “great blue wave” that has swept through the watch industry in recent years ? giving rise to a host of blue dials and straps from brands in every style and price segment ? continued into this year’s Baselworld watch fair, as evidenced by two new models from Raymond Weil, called Maestro Blues. Here is what you need to know about them.
Raymond Weil Maestro Blues in polished steel (Ref. 2227-STC-00508)
Of course, as fans of the family-owned, Geneva-based brand would probably expect, “blues” in this case refers not just to a color scheme but to a musical style. Raymond Weil’s primary theme is music and musicians, especially in the aptly named Maestro series, which in recent years has given us timepieces inspired by the Beatles and Buddy Holly. The new models ? one in a polished steel case and the other in a rose-gold PVD-plated steel case, both measuring 40 mm in diameter ? are designed to pay tribute to the soulful sounds of the blues, as pioneered by legends like Robert Johnson, B.B. King, and Muddy Waters. The galvanic dark blue dials are enhanced with a wave-like motif that, for some, may call to mind the musical notes of a blues guitar or trumpet echoing through a dark, smoke-filled club. The steel model features an aperture at 12 o’clock revealing the heart of the mechanical movement.
The dials, each with baton-shaped hour and minute hands and white, applied, Roman numeral hour markers ? differ in their layout: the steel model...