A brief history of Ricordi London

G Ricordi & Co (London) Ltd started life in 1878 as the British branch of Casa Ricordi, and at that time owned the rights to the Italian catalogue in the UK and other countries in the former British Empire.

During the Second World War Ricordi London was able to ensure that such perennial favourites such as the Verdi Requiem and the Vivaldi Gloria, as reconstructed by Alberto Casella, remained in circulation in western Europe. From the 1950s onwards Ricordi London established a formidable reputation as a publisher of choral, instrumental and educational publications, many of which remain in our sales catalogue today.

In 1994 the Ricordi group of companies (which included companies in Munich and Paris as well as London and Milan) was acquired by BMG Music Publishing, which, at the millennium, added the famous French publishing houses Durand, Salabert and Eschig to the group. In 2007 the BMG Music Publishing division was, in turn, acquired by Universal Music Publishing Group.

Ricordi London in the 21st Century

Ricordi London´s current policy is to sign composers on an exclusive basis and it has become a significant force in contemporary music with eight composers on the current roster. Please visit the Composer pages for further information.

Ricordi London continues to produce print publications which are distributed by Universal Music MGB Publications. Please visit the Ricordi Sales page to see the current catalogue.

In 2006, with Universal´s acquisition of Complete Music, Ricordi London began to represent Lengnick composers including some of the major names of 20th Century English music. Please visit the Lengnick page for further information.