sempre la musica

“I think you will get on very well, you seem to think and hear alike...” were the words Professor Hans-Joachim Haas used to introduce his students Jin Choi and Stephan Cahen to each other and immediately put them to work on a recording project. Looking back, that was the very beginning of a wonderful friendship and successful partnership.

“We have been working together for over 25 years. Shortly after the student project, we founded sempre la musica, a music production company that connects our two countries of origin, Germany and South Korea, and enables musicians and producers to carry out their recording projects intercontinentally”, remembers Stephan Cahen, and Jin Choi adds: “At slm, we bridge the gap between Europe and Asia, supporting and accompanying Asian artists on recordings and tours in Europe – and vice versa. Our team finds the right recording location, provides equipment and staff and delivers postproduction on time, whether for digital, physical or multimedia releases”.

To date, many Korean artists prefer to produce in Europe, and European artists are looking to expand their reach in Korea. slm supports these projects by finding optimal production environments, strategic artistic planning in relation to the two very different cultural surroundings and music markets, and many other services. For a large number of European companies, slm is the local consulting and executing partner in South Korea.

The name is based on a signature that the great conductor Kurt Eichhorn sketched in the autograph book for the then six-year-old Stephan after a concert. sempre la musica - forever the music!

“True to this motto, we make our recordings with dedication and the utmost responsibility. Kurt Eichhorn's words are a reminder for us not to lose sight of the music in music productions and never to prioritise the recording technology used. There is no ‘recording philosophy’ at slm. Every situation is different, and whatever sounds good and ultimately supports the music and our artists is allowed”, the two explain their philosophy.

Many major clients such as Warner, Sony Music or Universal Music with labels like DECCA, Deutsche Grammophon and Archiv Produktion trust in the reliable sound work of slm. The company is proud partner of Dolby, Apple Music, ARTE Concert, and Deutsche Grammophon STAGE+.