Manfred Eicher (born 9 July 1943, in Lindau, Germany) is a German record producer and the founder of ECM Records.
Eicher studied music at the Academy of Music in Berlin. He is a record producer and a double-bass player. In 1969 he founded ECM Records (Edition of Contemporary Music) in Munich. Some of the famous artists he has recorded over the last 50 years are Keith Jarrett, John Abercrombie, Jan Garbarek, Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Jack DeJohnette, Anouar Brahem, Dave Holland, Pat Metheny, Ralph Towner, Terje Rypdal, Steve Kuhn, and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.
A notable record ECM released in its early years was The Köln Concert, a solo piano performance by Keith Jarrett, which became the all-time best-selling solo piano album.
In 1984 Eicher started a sublabel, ECM New Series, for classical music. Some of the artists whose work was released on the New Series were Steve Reich, Arvo Pärt, John Adams, Gavin Bryars, Meredith Monk, and the mediaeval composer Pérotin. Perhaps the most remarkable record was the bestseller Officium (1994), a collaboration between Jan Garbarek and the Hilliard Ensemble, performing compositions by Cristóbal de Morales, Pérotin and others.
In 1992 Manfred Eicher co-directed and co-wrote the film Holozän (Man in the Holocene). In 2002 he wrote the score for the film Kedma.
Eicher has produced most of the records released on his label. Each jazz record takes an average of two days to record and one day to mix. Most have been recorded with Jan Erik Kongshaug (of Talent Studios and later Rainbow Studios) as sound engineer. Eicher has produced more than a thousand albums to date.
Eicher's deceptively simple aesthetic is unfailingly harmonious. He records musicians he likes, allows them to trust their own instincts, and plays a directorial role. (Jazz Review)