BMG Classics boosts Palmer to sr. VP-G.M.
He'll also shepherd the efforts of BMG-distributed labels Conifer Classics, ECM and Melodiya.
Palmer, who joined the company just over a year ago as veep, is the second-highest-ranking exec in the potent BMG Entertainment division. He will report to Cor Dubois, prexy of BMG Classics.
Palmer's "expertise in the areas of strategic marketing and sales execution has made a significant contribution in helping to shape the new direction of BMG Classics," Dubois told Daily Variety.
Under Dubois and Palmer, BMG Classics has responded to the changing classical music marketplace by reducing the output of the label from more than 100 releases to less than half, allowing label marketers to concentrate on the bow of each new album.
The arm's considerable marketing acumen has also been tapped by other divisions within the BMG family.
BMG Classics boasts a diverse contingent of artists such as the Chieftains, Michael Tilson Thomas, Marianne Faithfull and James Galway, among others.
It will also release the highly anticipated "Carnival," a disc to benefit the Rainforest Foundation, which has tracks from a wide range of artists such as Johnny Clegg, Tina Turner, Bette Midler, Luciano Pavarotti and Ruben Blades, among others.
Palmer, a well-respected G.M., is perhaps best known for his tenures at Relativity Records, where he played a role in Sony Music's 50% acquisition of RED, the label's distribution setup, and at Atco Records, where he rose to label prexy in 1991.
