Wise Music Group has appointed Dirk Lange to the role of managing director of UK rights companies.
His remit includes some of Wise Music's best-known brands such as Chester Music, Novello and Co, Campbell Connelly and Sparta Florida.
Lange will relocate from Hamburg to London and take on the key role from the beginning of April.
“I'm very excited about Dirk joining our UK management team,” said Marcus Wise, CEO of Wise Music Group. “Dirk has some of the best ears in the business and a proven record of signing landmark writers and developing world class programming for Wise Music in his current role in Germany. He's already well known to many of the composers on our roster.
“I’m confident his move to London will deliver significant success locally in discovering new talent, identifying acquisitions, and managing our core classical and contemporary music activities in all genres.’
“Wise Music is one of the world’s leading independent music publishers,” said Dirk Lange. “Having worked for the company in various positions on the continent, it is a tremendous pleasure and honour to be taking over this new role in the London office. I am very much looking forward to working with my new colleagues and the outstanding group of the world's finest composers and songwriters.”
Dirk has some of the best ears in the business and a proven record of signing landmark writers
Marcus Wise
Dirk Lange has spent his career in the music industry working in A&R, artist management, and sync for both labels and publishers. He has worked for Bosworth Music, the Berlin-based arm of Wise Music Group, since 2007 as head of sync and creative director.
In the last few years his role expanded to European creative director, new talent, while still managing sync for Bosworth.
He has been instrumental in signing publishing deals with writers for Wise Music Group such as Ólafur Arnalds, Volker Bertelmann, Hania Rani, David Sylvian and the Portico Quartet.
Lange has held previous roles at Sony Classical/Masterworks, BMG and Warner Classics as an A&R manager, as well as for Chester Music in London as a composer manager to Michael Nyman and Joby Talbot.
The current MD of UK rights companies, Wiebke Busch, will move to a new, part-time role within Wise Music Group based in Berlin, where she will continue supporting the classical rights of Wise Music Group.
PHOTO: Kate Johnson
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