Itzhak Perlman Primary Wave Deal

Itzhak Perlman, who’s inked a rights-related partnership agreement with Primary Wave. Photo Credit: Primary Wave

Primary Wave has acquired an interest in the work of “incomparable” violinist Itzhak Perlman – including a stake in “all” the 79-year-old’s recordings.

New York City-based Primary Wave and Tel Aviv-born Itzhak Perlman revealed their agreement today; the corresponding announcement message doesn’t dive into the precise ownership or financial details.

However, it does spell out that the pact encompasses “recording interests for all recordings performed by” the 15-time Grammy winner throughout the past half of a century or so. Additionally, the deal extends to the veteran conductor’s “artist royalties, as well as name and likeness rights,” according to Primary Wave.

Some of the many recordings at hand are Perlman renditions of “Black Orpheus”/“Manha De Carnaval,” Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, and Tchaikovsky’s “Violin Concerto, Op. 35,” to name just a few. Also included are Perlman’s contributions to the scores of Schindler’s List and Memoirs of a Geisha, among others.

Moving forward, Primary Wave and the Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Perlman intend to jointly explore marketing initiatives, sync opportunities, and new film and TV projects, per the involved parties.

And Perlman, who’s lined up a number of performances for the new year, indicated that he and Primary Wave had been in talks for a while prior to today’s announcement.

“I am excited to work with Primary Wave to see what plans they develop to take care of my recordings and to see what new opportunities they bring to the table,” relayed Perlman, who first performed on The Ed Sullivan Show nearly 67 years ago. “We have been in discussions about this relationship for some time, and I am looking forward to working with them.”

In remarks of her own, Primary Wave VP of business and legal affairs Lexi Todd added: “Itzhak Perlman is hands-down the greatest violinist of our time. It is a true honor to have had the pleasure to work with Mr. Perlman and his team on this partnership, and we are all looking forward to working together on new opportunities to spread his undeniable musicianship and his incredible story.”

Back in August, Primary Wave invested in the publishing rights of Chuck Mangione, and October saw BMG score a worldwide admin agreement covering the catalog of flamenco guitar legend Paco de Lucía.