Martinville is a record label dedicated to art music: classical, contemporary, jazz and research. The name pays homage to Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville, the French typographer who in 1857 invented the first instrument capable of recording sound, the phonautograph, predating Edison's phonograph by twenty years. Scott de Martinville spent the rest of his life as a bookseller at 9 rue Vivienne in Paris.
Martinville doesn't just publish music. Every production is accompanied by exclusive content: artistic notes written by critics and musicologists, performer biographies, texts and images that tell the story of the work. It's an editorial approach to discography, designed for those who want to know more.
No algorithm decides what you listen to. At Martinville, it is the founding group—all musicians with extensive experience—who select the artists and works that will be part of the catalogue. This art director approach makes our project much more like a festival than a mere streaming tool.
If you're a musician, an ensemble or a label and want to be part of the Martinville project, write to us. We're looking for artists who share our vision: music that is thoughtful, carefully produced and told with passion.
