[Pias] Acquires Classical And Jazz Giants Harmonia Mundi

London, September 29th 2015 – [PIAS] one of the world’s leading independent music companies has announced the acquisition of harmonia mundi the respected classical, jazz and world music specialists.

This acquisition comprises the music assets of harmonia mundi but does not include its book publishing interests or retail operations.

With over 100 staff and offices in key territories harmonia mundi, which comprises record labels, music publishing and distribution divisions was founded in 1958 by the charismatic and visionary Bernard Coutaz (1922-2010), who guided the group to its position as a globally successful music company. Eva Coutaz, who has been involved in classical music production since the 1970’s, will remain a consultant to the harmonia mundi board.

This acquisition will be effective from October 1st 2015 and will see [PIAS] add harmonia mundi’s catalogue, infrastructure and expertise to its already successful portfolio of music interests.

Founded in Belgium by Kenny Gates and Michel Lambot, [PIAS] is celebrating 33 years as one of the world’s leading independent music companies in 2015. The company has 3 core divisions: [PIAS] Recordings, that signs and develops artists, [PIAS] Cooperative, an associated label group that partners with labels to help fund and develop their repertoire on an international basis, and [PIAS] Artist & Label Services, a sales, distribution and marketing team that takes repertoire to market, physically and digitally, on an global basis. With 16 offices in every major music market around the world [PIAS] represents a diverse range of key independent labels across numerous genres.

Kenny Gates, co-founder and CEO of [PIAS] said, “harmonia mundi is an extraordinary company with a special place in the hearts of music fans, particularly classical and jazz music fans, around the world. Much like [PIAS], harmonia mundi is run and staffed by passionate music lovers and we are looking forward to joining hands with them around the world and to bringing them into our family. This is an added dimension for [PIAS] and we can’t wait to work with these real experts in the field and to add our own experience, expertise and resources to help harmonia mundi thrive as a home for its labels and artists.“

Eva Coutaz of harmonia mundi said, “From the early conversations we had with Kenny and Michel, we felt that [PIAS] was the right home for our legacy. They share the same values as us and are passionate about continuing to release great music. We feel that harmonia mundi is in safe hands and are confident that there is an exciting future ahead.”