Santa Barbara Music Publishing

What Santa Barbara Music Publishing does

Santa Barbara Music Publishing, Inc. (SBMP) is an independent niche choral music publisher incorporated in California and headquartered at a PO Box address in Santa Barbara, operating the consumer-facing website sbmp.com. The company publishes and sells choral sheet music (octavos) and related repertoire, spanning a catalog attributed to over 300 composers and covering American folk, classical, gospel, spirituals, and multicultural works across multiple voicings (SATB, SSA, SSAA, TTBB, two-part) and difficulty levels. Beyond printed octavos, the company sells Digital Room ePrint titles (exclusive advanced repertoire delivered as personalized, licensed PDFs by email within 24 hours), Choral Tracks practice bundles (part-dominant, balanced voices, and accompaniment recordings licensed per work for up to 50 users at $49.99), promotional CDs ($2.00), DVDs, and music education books. Named institutional users such as Portland State University, USC Thornton School of Music, University of Washington, Bowling Green State University, Seattle Pro Musica, and East Central University Chorale illustrate use in college and community settings.

The core technology is a digital publishing and e-commerce platform rather than a software product: a custom PDF generator embeds the purchasing choir, conductor, and school name into each ePrint with legally enforceable photocopy permissions, while a separate turbify.net-powered checkout handles transactions. Physical orders are outsourced for fulfillment to GIA Publications, Inc., whose Chicago distribution center at 7404 South Mason Avenue handles charging and shipping under a long-standing channel partnership. Rights administration is operated through a network of third-party partners: ASCAP for performance licensing, Harry Fox Agency and Easy Song for mechanical licensing, and CCLI and OneLicense.net for church and congregational reprint permissions.

The revenue model is a hybrid of one-time per-unit sales and licensing royalties. Physical and ePrint octavos price at $1.75–$3.45 per title, Choral Tracks bundles at $49.99 per work, and CDs at $2.00. Composers earn 60% royalties on Digital Room titles, with SBMP retaining the balance. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer via sbmp.com, supplemented by an event-driven channel through ACDA reading sessions and choral conventions (continuous presence 2009–2025), and a channel-partner model via GIA for physical fulfillment. Customer segments are dominated by school choirs (children through college), church and sacred music programs, advanced and community choirs, and choral directors as research/buying personas. Management team data, headcount granularity, financials, funding history, and M&A activity are undisclosed in the source material.

Name

Santa Barbara Music Publishing

Legal name

Santa Barbara Music Publishing, Inc.

Website

https://sbmp.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Santa Barbara Music Publishing is an independent choral music publisher selling sheet music octavos, licensed ePrints, and Choral Tracks practice bundles from a 300-composer catalog to school choirs, church programs, and community ensembles across the US.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Music Publishing (Choral Sheet Music)

NAICS

Music Publishers (512230)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Print Music Publishing (Sheet Music, Scores, Educational Repertoire) (MPAIABAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Publishing Administration (Catalog Admin, Global Subpublishing) (MPAIABAB)

Keywords

• Choral sheet music
• Music publishing
• Choral octavos
• Performance licensing
• Practice recordings

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Barbara

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel

Revenue model

1. Sheet Music Sales: One-time purchase of physical or digital choral octavos and larger works. Individual titles range from $1.75 to $3.45 per octavo. Printed format shipped via GIA Publications; digital ePrint delivered via email within 24 hours.
2. Choral Track Bundles: Practice bundle containing part-dominant tracks for each voice part, balanced voices track, and accompaniment track. Licensed for up to 50 users per bundle at $49.99 per work.
3. Licensing and Royalties: Performance licensing through ASCAP membership. Digital licensing for YouTube/social media, mechanical licenses for CD production at $25 minimum. ePrint royalties pay composers 60% on Digital Room titles.
4. Promotional CDs: Compilation promotional CDs featuring recordings of sheet music works, sold at $2.00 per CD.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Santa Barbara Music Publishing publishes and sells choral sheet music octavos in printed and digital ePrint formats, organized in a catalog of 300+ composers across multiple voicings and difficulty levels. The company also licenses its compositions for performance, mechanical, and synchronization use, and sells accompanying Choral Tracks practice recordings, promotional CDs, DVDs, and music books to choral directors and choirs.

Product overview

Santa Barbara Music Publishing is a choral music publisher offering a portfolio of sheet music products centered on choral octavos available in both physical printed format and digital ePrint PDF format. The core product is choral sheet music with accompanying Choral Tracks practice recordings. The company organizes its catalog into named Choral Series curated by notable composers and conductors. Additional offerings include promotional CDs, DVDs/videos, and music books. The company also provides licensing services for performances, mechanical rights, and digital distribution of their compositions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Choral Octavos (Sheet Music) Physical and digital sheet music octavos for choral music, available in multiple voicings (SATB, SSA, SSAA, TTBB, Two-Part) and difficulty levels. Sold as printed copies or ePrint digital downloads. Priced $1.75 to $3.45 per title. For school, college, church, and community choirs.
• ePrint Digital Room Licensed ePrint PDF sheet music files delivered directly from SBMP.COM as custom PDFs that include the conductor, choir, and school name along with photocopy permission. Each license is non-transferable and final sale. Provides exclusive digital distribution of advanced repertoire.
• Choral Tracks Practice Bundle Practice accompaniment recordings bundles containing part-dominant tracks for each voice part, balanced voices track, and accompaniment track for rehearsal support. Priced at $49.99 per bundle and licensed for up to 50 users. The choral score is not included and must be ordered separately.
• Promotional CDs Compilation promotional CDs featuring recordings of SBMP sheet music works. Available at $2.00 per CD.
• DVDs and Videos Video recordings and DVDs of choral performances and educational materials.
• Music Books Music education books and instructional materials.
• Licensing Services Performance, mechanical, synchronization, and digital licensing services for SBMP compositions. Includes YouTube/social media licensing, CD mechanical licenses at $25 minimum, DVD synchronization licenses, and print licenses. Performance licensing handled through ASCAP.

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ASCAPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSBMP is a member of ASCAP, which serves as their non-exclusive agent for issuing performance licenses and collecting fees for performances of their music.
• Easy SongminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThird-party mechanical license administrator for manufacturing and distribution of records, CDs, and cassette tapes of SBMP copyrighted compositions.
• The Harry Fox Agency, Inc.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThird-party mechanical licensing organization handling rights for SBMP compositions.
• GIA Publications, Inc.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary distributor for physical sheet music orders. Handles order processing, payment collection, and shipping from 7404 S. Mason Ave, Chicago, IL 60638. Toll-free: 800-442-1358.
• CCLIminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChurch Copyright License provider for churches using SBMP music, offering annual licenses for printing, recording, and overhead projections.
• OneLicense.netminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPermission provider for reprinting and using SBMP music in congregational worship aids.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• GIA Publications, Inc. Largest U.S. choral publisher and SBMP's physical distributor. Directly competes in the same choral octavos, sacred, and educational repertoire category with overlapping customer base of directors and church musicians.
• Walton Music Corporation: Independent choral publisher with comparable educational and concert octavos. Targets the same K-12 and college choir market with a similar mix of new compositions and established works.
• Hinshaw Music Company: Independent choral publisher focused on concert and educational octavos. Competes for the same advanced and college-level choir repertoire with shared composer relationships and director customers.
• Alliance Music Publications: Boutique choral and educational music publisher with a similar focus on octavos for school and community choirs. Comparable in scale and target market to SBMP.
• Morning Star Music Publishers: Choral publisher with a strong sacred and church music catalog. Directly overlaps with SBMP's sacred and worship music segment and similar institutional church licensing structures.
• E.C. Schirmer Music Company: Independent publisher of concert choral octavos, anthems, and extended works. Competes for the same advanced collegiate and professional choir programming.
• Earthsongs: Specialist in multicultural and world-music choral repertoire, directly overlapping SBMP's Zulu, African, and global folk catalog. Targets choirs seeking culturally diverse programming.

Broad incumbents

• Hal Leonard Corporation: The dominant global print music publisher with a deep choral catalog across educational, sacred, and concert repertoire. Competes directly with SBMP for school, college, and community choir programming while also serving band, orchestra, and pop print markets.
• Boosey & Hawkes: Major international classical publisher with significant choral catalog including contemporary art music and educational works. Competes for advanced/professional choir repertoire.
• Oxford University Press (Music): Major publisher of choral octavos and educational music with strong university and church choir penetration. Overlaps with SBMP in academic and sacred choral categories.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/barbara_inc
• Facebookfacebook.com/SantaBarbaraMusicPublishing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Santa Barbara Music Publishing