Music Minus One (Music Minus One label in-house band)

Music Minus One (MMO) was an American educational music company founded in Westchester, New York. The company released play-along albums intended to accompany a melodic instrument or vocalist as an aid for practice and music education. Music Minus One was founded in 1950 by Irv Kratka, then a 24-year-old college student. The company's first recording was based on Franz Schubert's Trout Quintet, with one instrumental part omitted in each version so performers could play along with the remaining ensemble. In subsequent years the company expanded into chamber music, jazz, opera, vocal music and educational accompaniment recordings. Musicians appearing on MMO recordings included Stan Getz, Hank Jones, George Barnes, Max Roach, Julius Baker, Elaine Douvas, Armando Ghitalla, Stanley Drucker and Christian Reichert. MMO produced approximately 900 albums covering genres including classical music, chamber music, opera, lieder, popular music, jazz and religious music. During the expansion of its classical catalogue, Music Minus One developed long-term recording collaborations with a number of orchestras and conductors. Numerous concerto and accompaniment releases were recorded with the Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra under conductor Emil Kahn. Music Minus One also maintained an extensive collaboration with the Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra and Bulgarian conductor Nayden Todorov, particularly in classical and opera accompaniment recordings. In 2016 the CEO of Hal Leonard Corporation, Keith Mardak, purchased Music Minus One. "Records: Play Along". The New York Times. 13 September 1953. Retrieved 14 May 2026. Borgerson, Janet; Schroeder, Jonathan E. (2024). Designed for Success: Better Living and Self-Improvement with Midcentury Instructional Records. MIT Press. ISBN 9780262048835. Borgerson, Janet; Schroeder, Jonathan E. (2024). Designed for Success: Better Living and Self-Improvement with Midcentury Instructional Records. MIT Press. ISBN 9780262048835. "Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra discography". Discogs. Retrieved 14 May 2026. "Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1 (Music Minus One edition)". Stretta Music. Retrieved 14 May 2026. "Nayden Todorov". Re-Classical. Retrieved 14 May 2026. "Hal Leonard buys play-along music publisher Music Minus One". Milwaukee Business Journal. Retrieved 14 May 2026. UK distributors of Music Minus One NAMM Oral History Interview New York Times review of MMO's Trout Quintet recording