Case Study: Louis Vuitton × 37th America's Cup

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Penrose Audio was approached by Vincent, Music Supervisor at Louis Vuitton, to create a compelling music composition and custom sound design for their promotional announcement video, celebrating Louis Vuitton’s return as the official title partner for the 37th America’s Cup sailing race in Barcelona (August–October 2024).

Vincent’s brief clearly defined their vision:

“We’d like to find strong, epic, and cinematic music—something elegant but powerful, less intense than previous approaches, and aligned with Louis Vuitton's luxury identity.”

Our founder and lead composer, Davies Aguirre, took on the challenge, combining musicality and sonic craftsmanship to express both the elegance of Louis Vuitton and the intense excitement of world-class sailing.

Louis Vuitton’s partnership with the America's Cup embodies the intersection of heritage, luxury, and innovation. The campaign aimed to evoke the event's rich legacy alongside the adrenaline and energy of contemporary sailing, featuring advanced yacht designs and dynamic visuals. Our objective was to translate this concept into music and sound design that would seamlessly unite luxury brand aesthetics with intense, high-performance sport.

Davies Aguirre, founder of Penrose Audio, composed an original piece that addressed Louis Vuitton’s refined aesthetic sensibilities while amplifying the thrill of competitive sailing:

Music Composition:

Solo Violin Ostinato: Driving rhythmic motifs played by solo violins provided an engaging, emotional pulse aligned to the elegance and intensity requested by Louis Vuitton.

Chamber Strings Layering: Subtle yet expressive orchestral layers enriched the music, capturing the luxurious and timeless essence of Louis Vuitton.

Intense Percussion Elements: Carefully integrated percussion heightened the visual drama and adrenaline, ensuring the composition resonated with the dynamic yacht-racing sequences.

Custom Sound Design

Davies Aguirre also developed custom sound design to enhance visual storytelling, which included:

Cinematic Transitions: Carefully crafted to accentuate the editing flow and enhance moments of excitement, complementing sailing visuals.

Intense Ambient sounds to show the adrenaline of the race sequences

Bespoke Wood and Mechanical Clicks: Inspired by Louis Vuitton’s artisanal heritage, these unique textures rhythmically matched the visual transitions, echoing the luxury craftsmanship of the brand.

This musical exploration was guided closely by Vincent, music supervisor at Louis Vuitton, who provided invaluable direction early in the process:

Drawing from this feedback, we calibrated the intensity and emotion carefully, ensuring the final score elegantly balanced adrenaline-driven energy with sophisticated luxury.

Although our composition ultimately wasn’t selected (they decided to move forward with another musical option), this experience was deeply rewarding. Collaborating directly with Louis Vuitton’s creative vision challenged us to precisely align musical aesthetics with luxury branding, pushing our skills to new heights.

As our founder and lead composer Davies Aguirre reflected on the experience:

We proudly showcase this alternate version, representing our vision, passion, and meticulous approach to audio craftsmanship.

At Penrose Audio, founded by sound designer Davies Aguirre, we craft thoughtful, emotionally-driven audio experiences. We specialize in creating distinctive sonic identities for luxury, fashion, sports, and visual storytelling, pushing the boundaries of sound design and music composition.

Explore more from our portfolio to experience how we shape stories through sound.

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