San Francisco Conservatory buys classical record label

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF/AP) - The San Francisco Conservatory of Music announced Monday that it bought a classical record label following its acquisition of a management agency.

The school said Monday it had bought Pentatone Music, adding to a portfolio that includes Opus 3 Artists, which it purchased in October 2020.

"Bringing Pentatone in-house creates an extraordinary backdrop to explore new ideas for performing, recording and distributing music," conservatory president David Stull said in a statement.

Pentatone is based in Baarn, Netherlands, and will have access to the conservatory's recording studio in San Francisco. The label will record a performance of the National Brass Ensemble, of which Stull is executive director, conducted by San Francisco Symphony music director Esa-Pekka Salonen and will work with students at the conservatory's 2023 winter term.

Large classical labels such as Deutsche Grammophon, Decca and Sony have sharply curtailed new classical recordings in recent decades.