Metronome - Biography

Biography - Metronome

Sweden

Metronome Sweden story

SWEDEN
Anders Burman (b.1928) had been a Jazz mad teenager in Stockholm in the 1940's. A proficient drummer, he knew most of the local Jazz musicians and had contact with many more.
His older brother , Lasse, was a real business-man and could sell snow to Eskimos. Although not really music interested, one of his many projects - a miniature juke-box system - gave him an idea that if one owned the records being used in the juke-box, you could avoid paying licensing rights. He was wrong.
The money to start Metronome came from a little inheritance when their father died and their first labels read “Made in Sweden for Metronome Records Burman Brothers New York USA” The start capital lasted three months and, as Lasse was involved in other projects too, a further investment was suggested to a pair of older business associates, Mats and Tore Bjerke who got 60% of the stock – the brothers retaining 20% each.
Lasse, always the businessman, went to New York and in a short time found an representative agent and acquired the rights to three US Jazz labels –Savoy, Dial and Prestige. He even had Swedish recordings released in the US on those Labels.
He then got interested in film making.
Anders later found out that his brother had sold his 20% back to the Bjerkes in order to finance yet another of his projects – he began wondering what was to become of the company. Anders did the majority of the work but owned only 20%.
From the very beginning, Anders and Lasse had the help of a friend -another jazz-mad youngster – Börje Ekberg.
Börje was Hip and had worked his passage to New York a number of times on ocean liners and had returned with a very expensive item that was not widely available in Sweden- a Webster Wire Recorder – and that became an important part of Metronomes start up equipment.
Time rolled on and business was good but Anders wanted a better deal for himself and also wanted Börje Ekberg to be part owner of the company so they went to their financiers and demanded 50% for themselves and 50% for their investors- which they got.

Mats Bjerke established Metronome Denmark with Bengt Fabricus Bjerre and also Metronome Germany and these were completely separate from the Swedish company

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