NO SILENCE
Pianist Igor Levit is launching his own label: NO SILENCE. The first three albums will be released on 23 October in partnership with Sony Classical. The first single, Erik Satie’s Gymnopédie No. 1 performed by Igor Levit, will be released on 19 June.
„The world can never have enough voices that intervene through art. Voices that stand for beauty, for boundlessness, for liberation, for what it means to be human.
NO SILENCE is all of this. And it will become the network that helps artists carry their own work into the world with as much confidence as they possibly can.
NO SILENCE is the result of my life so far. And a new beginning. It is my answer to the many crises of our time, of which the loss of humanity, including through technology, is the greatest.
NO SILENCE is not simply a label. NO SILENCE is a stance. For beauty, for courage, against conformism, against extremism, for humanity.“ Igor Levit
The name NO SILENCE was conceived immediately after the Hamas massacre in Israel on 7 October 2023. Following an event titled “Against Silence, Against Anti-Semitism” that Levit organised together with other artists at the Berliner Ensemble, he decided to name his planned project NO SILENCE.
The first three album releases, in collaboration with Sony Classical – Igor Levit’s label since his solo album debut in 2013 – will appear on 23 October 2026. Lukas Sternath, winner of the ARD Music Competition and a BBC New Generation Artist, will make his debut with works by Franz Liszt and Franz Schubert.
The second album will feature Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 Eroica in Franz Liszt’s piano arrangement, performed by Igor Levit; it is paired with Arnold Schoenberg’s Ode to Napoleon, featuring conductor Antonello Manacorda, the Kammerakademie Potsdam and the acclaimed Burgtheater actress Dörte Lyssewski.
In addition, Igor Levit has recorded Erik Satie’s radical landmark work Vexations, which will be released in a special edition limited to 840 copies, featuring an NFC chip and a signed sheet of music from the recording session.
The future of NO SILENCE extends beyond the scope of a classical music label. It has been deliberately conceived to be open to all genres. The only criteria will be the quality and the distinctiveness of the artists involved.
According to Mark Cavell, President Sony Music Masterworks, „Igor Levit, as both a musician and beyond, is a person that continues to seek to have a positive impact on those around him and to always strive for originality, whether of thought or deed. The launch of “NO SILENCE” is another example of this and the artists who will have the privilege of being on the label will represent this spirit and ethos. Sony Classical and the Masterworks division are extremely proud to partner with Igor on this venture. “
Per Hauber, President Sony Classical, adds: „The launch of NO SILENCE marks the next milestone in our long-standing, close, and successful partnership with Igor Levit, which has always been defined by deep trust and extraordinary creativity. The first releases set bold and remarkable new standards. The Sony Classical team and the Masterworks division cannot wait for what comes next. “
The label is the beginning. There are plans to establish a NO SILENCE FOUNDATION, which will bring together a festival, an academy and a support programme under one umbrella, thereby providing individual support to musicians of all genres, cultures and generations worldwide.
