Swiss harpsichordist Christiane Jaccottet came from a musical family and began studying piano at the age of four. She continued her studies at the Conservatory at La-Chaux-de-Fonds and then the Viennese Musical Academy. At the age of 20, she won a competition sponsored by ARD Television in Munich. She developed her approach to performing on period instruments under Gustav Leonhardt. In 1964, she won the Soloist's Prize from the Swiss Music Society, and the following year she won the prize for harpsichord and basso continuo at the First International Music Competition in Bruges. She has toured the United States, Candada, Europe, and Australia, and has performed at major international music festivals. Her collaborators have included Heinz Holliger, Aurèle Nicolet, Michel Corboz, and Frank Martin. From 1975 until her death in 1999, she was a professor at the Geneva Conservatory. Jaccottet participated in over 100 recordings; especially notable are her interpretations of the Bach English Suites and Frank Martin's harpsichord concertos.