Windham Hill Records was an
Independent record label, founded in
1976 by
guitarist and
carpenter William Ackerman and his then-wife Anne Robinson. During its height in the 1980s, Windham Hill was a successful and well-respected independent music label . It was purchased by
BMG through a series of buyouts from 1992 through 1996 and is currently a
subsidiary of
Sony Music Entertainment.
Private Music, also a subsidiary of BMG, has issued some back-catalog releases under the Windham Hill Records imprint.
History
Windham Hill was originally a
folk music label, releasing Ackerman's own work, as well as that of other guitarists. It then expanded to include
electronic and
world music ensembles. While the artists of Windham Hill may not have used the term, the label eventually became known in the industry mainly as a
New Age music label, with its
Billboard-charting albums appearing primarily on the New Age genre charts. The label is best known for its high sound quality, groundbreaking music, unique flagship
collections and tasteful album art within the form of an identifiable label brand identity.
The label's records were distributed by
A&M Records until
PolyGram purchased A&M in 1989. Since then it has been distributed by
BMG, which had distributed A&M from 1979 until the sale. Will Ackerman sold his half of the company to BMG in 1992 and Anne Ackerman sold her half in 1996. BMG began distributing Windham Hill through
RCA Records and merged other music labels that they purchased (such as
Peter Baumann's Private Music) into Windham Hill, forming the Windham Hill Group. In doing so, artists such as
Yanni,
Ray Lynch, and
Vangelis joined the label, though they were not original Windham Hill artists.
Jim Brickman was the last artist signed to the label pre-buyout and he was the last artist to leave Windham Hill in 2006, joining
Savoy Records. Dawn Atkinson and Bob Duskis, former executive producers of Windham Hill, headlined the BMG-absorbed company and were executives for
RCA Victor (which oversaw Windham Hill) and ran Windham Hill's day-to-day business. Duskis left the label in 1997 to form
Six Degrees Records and Dawn Atkinson left after the
Sony BMG merger in 2004. Now a majority of Windham's releases are distributed through
Legacy Recordings, formerly a division of
Sony BMG. On October 2, 2008, Sony absorbed all of the BMG assets and wrapped Windham Hill into their conglomerate. Sony has no
A&R department in Windham Hill and records no new music at this time. It is uncertain whether or not Windham Hill will ever release any new material, though, as part of the Legacy Recordings branch, Windham Hill consistently recycles tunes previously released.
For Windham Hill's 30th Anniversary, Sony BMG released a special collection kit, with an article from
Will Ackerman.
For the first time in over 15 years, many of the early Windham Hill artists who recorded under Ackerman performed together on August 27, 2006 at the
Villa Montalvo in
Saratoga, California near
San Jose. Though more "30th Anniversary" concerts are set, this was the only planned concert of this magnitude. Artists included:
Barbara Higbie,
Jim Brickman,
Tuck & Patti,
Alex de Grassi,
Liz Story,
Philip Aaberg,
Michael Manring,
Samite,
David Cullen,
Tracy Silverman, Lisa Lynne, George Tortorelli, Sean Harkness (who also planned and invited the musicians), and, of course,
Will Ackerman.
Artists
