Artwork of the Musique Pour L’Image Library
Based in Paris, France, Musique Pour L'Image was founded in 1967 by jazz composer Robert Viger. The label began its operation by issuing 10″ LPs, moving to the 12″ format after its twenty-fifth release. The music included on these records ranges from jazz to childrens to avant garde and experimental (sometimes intersecting each other creating some interesting results).
While the quality of music is certainly recognized as some of the best of librarys' "golden era," it is the combination of these recordings and their stunning sleeve artwork counterparts that makes MPI one of the most desirable of labels for library collectors.
The majority of the early 10″ sleeves were designed by Robert J. Hilton, a man who unfortunately very little is known about. The only other names I've come up with as being credited for these early sleeves are Didier La Mache, Robert Planet and Maurice Ardouin.
The collage work done in the 12″ LP series seems to stand out for me, however there are few in the 10″ series (L'Images en Enfance, by Ardouin in particular) that are truly unlike anything else done in the field of library music. A lot of time seemed to have been spent crafting these sleeves — it's quite interesting (and unfortunate, really) that most of these were left unused an unseen, filed away in the back room of a television studio.
I guess I should point out that this isn't meant to be musical guide to these records, merely a gallery showcasing MPI's cover art from the late 60's into the mid 70's (we're also missing quite a few of their releases so don't take this to be a discography either). Think of this as "part two" of this labels' section in Johnny Trunk's "The Music Library" book.
-Ed Slavin, Images courtesy of Edson Carvalho
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Jazz Moderne
MPI 501
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Action, Charme, Espace
MPI 502
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Sports et Action
MPI 504
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Espace et Actualite
MPI 505
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Jazz Mobile
MPI 506
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Barroque Jazz et Romantisme
MPI 507
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Etudes en Mouvements
MPI 508
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Vite et Doux
MPI 509
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Charme, Intimite, Loisirs
MPI 510
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Arts Contemporains
MPI 511
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Dramatiques et Scientifiques
MPI 512
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Mouvements Modernes
MPI 513
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Musique Glissante
MPI 515
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Percussions
MPI 516
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Rythme et Vacances
MPI 517
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Tragiques, Bucoliques, Poetiques, Scientifiques
MPI 519
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Sports, Pop, Gags, Sweet
MPI 520
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Images De L'Enfance
MPI 523
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| 12″ LP Series on Page 2 | ||||||