AimHigher Recordings

Lore & Background

AimHigher Recordings was founded in 2012 by Monica and Kevin Fitzgibbons as a counterpart to its sister label, De Montfort Music. While De Montfort focused on Roman Catholic choral music, AimHigher's catalog covered a more eclectic repertoire, featuring music for choir, big band, and organ. Artists recorded by the label include the Boys of St. Paul's Choir School, the NOLA Players, and the London Oratory School Schola Cantorum.

Universal Music Group distributed AimHigher's recordings on its Decca and Verve labels through 2016. In January 2017, AimHigher announced a new worldwide distribution deal with Sony Masterworks. On March 24, 2017, AimHigher and De Montfort signed a deal with St. John Cantius Church of Chicago to acquire its catalog of self-published recordings and re-release them worldwide.

AimHigher Recordings was acquired by Sophia Institute Press in 2021, along with De Montfort Music, and will release all future albums via its parent's Sophia Music division.

Reader's Guide

AimHigher Recordings occupies a niche in the American recording industry as a label that bridged independent and classical-influenced genres. Its significance lies in its eclectic catalog, which included choral, big band, and organ works, and its role in re-releasing the self-published catalog of St. John Cantius Church of Chicago. The label's distribution history—first through Universal Music Group's Decca and Verve labels, then through Sony Masterworks—reflects its ability to secure major-label partnerships. Its acquisition by Sophia Institute Press in 2021 marked a shift from independent to subsidiary status, aligning it with a larger publishing entity. The label's legacy includes recordings such as 'Christmas in Harvard Square' and 'Sacred Treasures of England,' which document performances by notable ensembles. The withdrawal of 'Sacred Treasures of Spain' from distribution shortly after its 2019 release, followed by its re-release by Hyperion Records in 2020, highlights a notable episode in the label's history.