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Our ‘Natural Sound’ Philosophy

Your ears are important to us. They are your most sensitive organs, incapable of ‘listening away’. That’s why, for 30 years, we at Meridian Records have continued to believe that our listeners’ ears deserve the very best in ‘natural sound’ recording when it comes to the enjoyment of classical music.

On the basis that we take just two ears to the concert hall, our founders, John Shuttleworth and the late Francis Loring, had the vision to begin an independent classical label that uniquely recorded with just one pair of high-quality microphones. To this day, we source a recording venue with the very finest acoustic and avoid all artificial processing such as compression, equalisation and artificial reverberation in order to create the closest thing to the concert hall experience you will ever find on disc.

This revered approach, coupled with our success in championing new and established artists performing both well-known and previously unrecorded repertoire, has resulted in the continued and valued loyalty of our artists and listeners for the last thirty years.

We hope you enjoy it too!

What they say about us: Four decades of praise

E77003 (later CDE 84256) - Consort Music of the English Renaissance
The technical standard of this disc is absolutely superb, with an open natural acoustic and realistic stereo imagary.
[DB - Practical Hi-Fi, June 1978]

E77088 (later CDE 84297) - Anthems by S.S. Wesley
This recording is another example from Meridian of just how well a single microphone pair can handle complex and extensive material. [Peter Turner - Hi-Fi News, May 1985]

CDE 84370 - French Choral Music
Meridian's recorded sound is excellent, its clarity catching every delicate nuance of the phrasing; the resonance makes the sound radiant without being distracting.
[Janet Banks - BBC Music Magazine December 1997]

CDE 84404 - Hummel Trios and Scottish Song Settings
The care that has gone into both recording quality and the performances on this disc is evident, and is fully recommended. [Ian Graham-Jones - Early Music Review, October 1999]

CDE 84412 - Israeli Wind Virtuosi
The recording is detailed without being spotlit and is a pleasure to hear.
[Colin Clarke, 2000]

CDE 84430 - Turina Violin Sonatas
Meridian captures the sound of both instruments with gorgeous clarity and fine balance
[Roderick Dunnett - The Strad, October 2000]

CDE 84458 - Bush Chamber Works vol. 1
"convincingly played, excellently engineered and attractively presented, should be on everyone's shopping list"
[Piers Burton-Page International Record Review, December 2002]

CDE 84469 - Enescu Music for Violin and Piano
"Stanzeleit & Jacobson bring a spirited eloquence to these performances, revelling in the sonatas' virtuoso demands as well as their atmospheric lyricism, and they're recorded in a pleasantly natural ambience - HIGHLY RECOMMENDABLE"
[Calum MacDonald BBC Music Magazine March 2003]

CDE 84547 - Bridge - Howells - Alwyn  - Scott  The Primrose Piano Quartet
The sound quality of the disc is second to none and the playing is all one could imagine from a group that has named itself after William Primrose (1904-1982) who was one of the finest violists of the 20th century. The Primrose Quartet was founded in 2004 by four well known chamber musicians.  Amongst other things they have and are championing ‘under-represented - British composers. [John France - Musicweb International Sept 2006]

Meet the Team
Richard Hughes (Managing Director/Chief Sound Engineer) Richard joined Meridian Records in 1989 as a trainee manager. To date he has recorded over 200 CDs and built up an international reputation for capturing a musician's individual and natural sound. Artists have repeatedly asked him out to many countries in Europe, North and South America, Asia and Australia to record. For the last ten years Richard has been responsible for the running of Meridian Records.

Alex Gettinby (Assistant Sound Engineer) joined Meridian Records in April 2003 and assists Richard in all general aspects of running the company. Alex initially trained as a sound engineer with Tim Benson (Columbia Records, Atlantic Records), at Miskin Theatre Recording Studio and, in addition to working for Meridian, is a freelance sound engineer, producer and musician.

Susanne Hughes-Stanzeleit (Producer & Editor) Susanne performs worldwide as a solo violinist, chamber musician and guest-leader of many orchestras and smaller ensembles. Her extensive repertoire features many commissions and UK premieres of works by some of today's leading composers.

Over the years she has released more than 30 CDs as soloist and chamber musician. She had always been intrigued by the recording process, especially the role of the producer. After her marriage to Richard she started producing on a part-time basis for Meridian Records, and when Meridian's last full-time producer announced his departure in the summer of 2006, Susanne resigned from her position of Head of Strings at the London College of Music to take over his position. Recording artists seem to appreciate being led through their sessions by someone who knows what it is like to be on the other side of the microphone, and Susanne certainly enjoys helping them to sound their best.

Joseph Watson (Marketing & Development) joined Meridian in January 2007 with the remit of developing new audiences and forging dynamic collaborations with other creative organisations. Before coming to Meridian he studied music to postgraduate level at King’s College London and worked with various major London cultural institutions on a number of artistic ventures.

Joanna Downing (General Assistant) joined Meridian Records in May of 2007. Her responsibilities include the smooth-running of all elements of our CD production and processing, and contributing more generally to the future development of the company in our thirtieth year. In addition to working for Meridian, she is currently studying part-time and hopes to attend university as a mature student in the future.