28th November 1931

Ultraphon goes bankrupt

Germany’s Ultraphon went bankrupt and its assets were bought by Ravitas, which in 1933 started to operate as a publisher under the title Ultraphon. The ensuing Czech joint-stock company for the gramophone industry and retail, based in Prague’s Klimentská street, had the Ultraphon brand registered for Czechoslovakia and, for the first time, the Supraphon trademark for the whole world (with a few exceptions). The firm focused on domestic music and closely collaborated with reputed Czech institutions and organisations. In the 1930s and 1940s, Supraphon records (bearing SUPRAPHON U on the label) particularly contributed to the promotion of Czech classical music abroad. At the time, the company’s extensive catalogue included records systematically mapping the works of Bedřich Smetana, Antonín Dvořák, Leoš Janáček, and other Czech composers of international renown. The albums were recorded by distinguished Czech and foreign artists, chamber ensembles and orchestras led by noted conductors.