Saga Records

Cassini attracted investment from Wilfred Alonzo Banks, ACCA (1913–1983), a major in the Royal Army Service Corps in World War II where he was mentioned in despatches,[9] and who had subsequently developed a business to import and distribute toys and decorations.

Through their European connections, Barrington-Coupe and Banks approached producer Paul Lazare in Hamburg who had access to a studio and session musicians at low cost, some of whom were attached to the Sinfonieorchester des Norddeutschen Rundfunks.

[14] Saga sent pianists Sergio Fiorentino and Joyce Hatto, both of whom were on Barrington-Coupe's books, to recording sessions Hamburg in 1958, and the orchestra was mostly directed by Erich Riede.

In February 1960, Barrington-Coupe and record producer Joe Meek formed Triumph (Superfi) Sound Ltd, targeting a teenage market was just emerging in the UK.

[21] Whilst other independent labels relied on budget releases of well-known orchestras hiding behind a pseudonym, Saga traded on its recognised artists.

[22] The London Philharmonic Choir and orchestra with soloists Harper, Watts, Robertson and Stalman under Frederic Jackson were engaged to record Handel's Messiah in May 1960, and further Hamburg sessions led to a cash crisis.

With no staff, facilities or artists on his books, Banks traded the business and its rights in over 300 master recordings to Marcel Rodd of Allied Records/Classics Club for 1,000 bargain "Lyrique" LPs, a deal completed in March 1961 once he had established that Barrington Coupe had no copyright claim over the tapes.

Perry created a new full-price Celebrity sub-label which featured the Fine Arts Quartet and made John Shirley-Quirk's debut recording.

He reused some of the Lyrique masters which he had previously sold to Banks and acquired tapes from the French budget label Guilde Européene du Microsillon (GEM), many without documented attribution.

In February 1962 Marcel Rodd moved to a large Victorian house near Swiss Cottage where he converted the basement ballroom into a recording studio and set up Saga's offices on the ground floor.

Rodd's Classics Club label was wound up in mid 1964 and the enlarged Saga Records moved into a former paint factory at 326, Kensal Road.

Choral and organ repertoire arrived with the acquisition of Alpha Records, Oxford in 1966 and some baroque and classical chamber music was licensed from Amadeo on condition that pseudonyms concealed the musicians’ identities.

[24] However, the rise of budget re-release labels, such as Classics for Pleasure backed by EMI, made it difficult to market these older pseudo-stereo recordings and by the end of the decade new releases were so sparse that regular advertising in Gramophone dried up in 1971.

Martin Compton, a music graduate, was already on Saga's staff and became studio producer and John Shuttleworth, a teacher at Eltham College was recording engineer.