Artinoise

What Artinoise does

ARTinoise s.r.l is an Italian company founded in 2017 in Tolentino, in the Marche region — a historic electronic musical instrument district previously home to Farfisa, Eko, Elka, Siel, and Crumar. The company was recognized as an Innovative Startup by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) and cites over 70 man-years of consolidated industrial and electronic expertise. ARTinoise designs, develops, and manufactures hybrid acoustic/digital musical instruments, with its flagship product the re.corder — a soprano recorder that combines traditional fingering with embedded touch-sensitive sensors, a breath pressure sensor, and Bluetooth 5 BLE-MIDI connectivity. Supporting products include zefiro (a compact USB-C MIDI breath controller), zefiro Pro (with built-in accelerometer), zefCare (a dual-function breath controller with sobriety detection), BandHUB (a 16-channel BLE-MIDI to USB interface), and the trillo pocket-sized standalone digital wind instrument. The accompanying software stack comprises the re.corder, zefiro, and zefCare companion apps (iOS, Android, Huawei), the class.room educational platform supporting up to 32 simultaneously connected instruments, the BandHUB WebApp, and the Re.corder Bridge utility. The company holds multiple international patents on its hybrid instrument technology.

The company's business model centers on hardware sales (re.corder at a 149 EUR suggested retail price), complemented by free companion mobile apps with embedded sound banks, the 'Learning Music with the re.corder' educational method book, and classroom kit bundles for schools. Distribution combines direct e-commerce via shop.artinoise.com with global and regional retail partnerships — Thomann as the official global launch partner since August 2021, Proel in Italy, MGI Music in India, StrumentiMusicali in Italy, Amazon Italy, and mobile app stores. The primary customer segment is K-12 music education; secondary segments include individual musicians, music enthusiasts, and accessibility-focused users benefiting from alternative play modes such as Lip Sensor, Keyboard, and Magic Wand. Go-to-market is multi-modal: product-led growth via free apps, community-led crowdfunding (re.corder and trillo campaigns), event-driven outreach at NAMM, Music China, and Didacta Italy, and brand ambassadorships including Indian flautist Naveen Kumar. Strategic partnerships include the Andrea Bocelli Foundation for educational workshops and AudioModeling for SWAM instrument integration in the OPERA limited edition.

ARTinoise is privately held and bootstrapped, with capital sourced exclusively through product crowdfunding rather than institutional venture capital or private equity. The re.corder crowdfunding campaign (October 2019–September 2020) attracted approximately 1,000 backers globally; the OPERA campaign (November 2023) and the trillo campaign (June 2026, reaching 600% of its funding target) followed. No revenue figures, headcount, or external investor information is publicly disclosed, and the company has remained a focused niche hardware design house operating from its Marche headquarters.

Name

Artinoise

Legal name

ARTinoise s.r.l

Website

https://artinoise.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ARTinoise s.r.l is an Italian manufacturer of hybrid acoustic/digital musical instruments, primarily the re.corder digital recorder with BLE-MIDI connectivity and embedded sensors. It serves K-12 music education, individual musicians, and accessibility-focused users through direct e-commerce and global distributors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Electronic Musical Instruments

NAICS

Musical Instrument Manufacturing (339992), Musical Instrument and Supplies Retailers (459140)

SIC

Musical Instruments (3931)

akta.pro primary industry

Musical Instruments (Acoustic & Electric) (MPAIAJAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Music Production Hardware (Synthesizers, Drum Machines, Samplers, MIDI Controllers) (MPAIAJAE), Music Education Hardware (Practice Tools, Metronomes, Tuners, Lab Systems) (MPAIAJAJ)

Keywords

• Electronic wind instruments
• MIDI breath controllers
• Hybrid digital recorders
• Music education technology
• BLE-MIDI instruments

Headquarters

HQ city

Ancona

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Hardware Sales: Sale of physical musical instruments including re.corder, zefiro, zefiro Pro, BandHUB, and accessories. Primary revenue stream with suggested retail price of 149 EUR for re.corder.
2. Software Apps: Companion mobile apps for re.corder, zefiro, and zefCare available on iOS, Android, and Huawei app stores. Apps include SoundBank with 32 instrument timbres.
3. Educational Content and Books: Sale of 'Learning Music with the re.corder' educational method book and digital classroom kit packages for schools.
4. Limited Edition Products: Premium products including re.corder OPERA featuring handcrafted Italian walnut shell and SWAM instruments from AudioModeling, sold through Kickstarter and later retail.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Artinoise designs, develops, and manufactures hybrid acoustic/digital musical instruments, including the re.corder (hybrid soprano recorder with touch sensors and BLE-MIDI), zefiro (miniature MIDI breath controller), zefCare (breath controller with sobriety detection), and BandHUB (multi-channel BLE-MIDI interface). The company also provides companion mobile apps, an educational class.room platform for managing up to 32 devices, and method books. Products are sold through a direct e-shop and global distributors targeting musicians, educators, and consumers.

Product overview

ARTinoise offers a portfolio of hybrid digital/acoustic musical instruments with companion software applications. The core products are re.corder (hybrid digital recorder), zefiro (MIDI breath controller for smartphones), and zefCare (breath controller with sobriety detection). Supporting software includes dedicated apps for each instrument providing sound banks and configuration, class.room for educational classroom management of up to 32 re.corder devices, and BandHUB for multi-device MIDI connectivity. The ecosystem also includes the re.corder OPERA limited edition in Italian walnut, educational books, and a digital classroom kit bundle. Products can function independently or integrate with third-party DAWs and music production software via MIDI protocol.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• re.corder: Digital/acoustic hybrid recorder that combines traditional recorder simplicity with digital power, featuring MIDI connectivity, interactive app, and accessibility features for inclusive music education.
• zefiro
• zefCare
• BandHUB
• class.room

Products and services

• re.corder Flagship hybrid acoustic/digital soprano recorder combining traditional recorder design with embedded touch-sensitive digital sensors and a breath pressure sensor. Supports Bluetooth 5 BLE-MIDI for use as a wireless MIDI controller with 32 instrument timbres via the companion app. Designed for musicians, students, and inclusive music education.
• zefiro World's smallest MIDI breath controller with USB-C connectivity that plugs into a smartphone to control music apps and virtual instruments via breath. The zefiro Pro model adds a built-in 3D accelerometer for motion data via MIDI. Patented worldwide.
• zefCare Dual-function USB-C device that combines MIDI breath-controller musical instrument capability with breath-based sobriety (BAC) level estimation. Weighs approximately 10g and includes a precise breath sensor, 3D accelerometer, and USB-MIDI connectivity.
• BandHUB Bluetooth 5 multi-channel BLE-MIDI to USB interface that connects up to 16 BLE-MIDI devices (such as re.corder) to a PC or Mac, with automatic MIDI channel assignment for DAW workflows and classroom orchestras.
• class.room Educational mobile/web application that allows music teachers to connect and monitor up to 32 re.corder units in real time. Features live fingering visualization, interactive multi-track sheet music, customizable student configurations, and group management for digital classroom orchestras.
• re.corder App Free smartphone companion app for re.corder providing a sound bank with 32 instrument timbres, fingering configuration, transposition, effects, response curves, and access to accessibility play modes (Lip Sensor, Keyboard, Magic Wand). Available on iOS, Android, and Huawei app stores.
• zefiro App Companion smartphone app for zefiro that provides a range of instrument sounds (classical, ethnic, fantasy) controlled by breath input.
• zefiro Manager Web app for advanced configuration of the zefiro breath controller, particularly for use with third-party apps and VST plugins. Compatible with Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Opera.
• Re.corder Bridge Windows 10 application based on loopMIDI that creates virtual MIDI ports to route re.corder data to DAWs, simplifying MIDI mode usage on Windows.
• re.corder OPERA Limited edition premium variant of re.corder encased in a handcrafted Italian walnut shell. Includes an exclusive iOS app featuring top-tier SWAM virtual instruments from AudioModeling. World's lightest patented electronic wind instrument.
• Learning Music with the re.corder Educational method book for the re.corder, combining theory and practice with progressive lessons, guided exercises, video demonstrations, and tracks to play along with the dedicated app. Written by Marco Agostinelli.
• Kit Classe Musicale Digitale Complete digital music classroom bundle including re.corder instruments and supporting materials, designed for school classroom deployments and sold through the Artinoise shop.

Quantifiable outcome

• Supports up to 32 simultaneous re.corder instruments in classroom with real-time monitoring
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

AI capability3 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ProelcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorItalian distributor partner for ARTinoise products. Collaborated at NAMM 2023 (Booth 9502, Hall B) to showcase re.corder and class.room app to international audience.
• SoundMachinesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with SoundMachines at NAMM 2024, combining SoundMachines' 20 years of expertise in consumer and industrial electronics with ARTinoise's digital instrument development.
• Naveen KumarcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerRenowned Indian flautist and A.R. Rahman collaborator serves as brand ambassador. Featured performer at NAMM 2024 booth to demonstrate re.corder capabilities to music industry.
• MGI MusiccoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExclusive distributor of re.corder in India, bringing the Italian-made hybrid recorder to the Indian market through local retail network.
• Andrea Bocelli FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosted ARTinoise workshop 'The recorder of the Future' at Giffoni Film Festival for ABF masterclass participants. Partnership focused on music education and innovation for youth.
• FatarminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner for Music China 2024 exhibition, providing support and hospitality for ARTinoise booth at the Shanghai trade show.
• ThomanncoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor international music instrument distributor. Official product launch partner in August 2021, making re.corder available globally through thomann.de.
• StrumentiMusicaliminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorItalian music instrument retailer and distributor for re.corder in Italy.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• TEControl: TEControl specializes in MIDI breath controllers and electronic wind instrument accessories, overlapping directly with zefiro in the breath-controller product category with comparable USB/Bluetooth MIDI functionality.
• Artiphon: Artiphon makes hybrid multi-instrument controllers (Instrument 1, Orba) that combine traditional playing with digital sound — an adjacent emerging player in the hybrid physical/digital instrument space ARTinoise occupies.

Direct peers

• Nuvo Instrumental: Nuvo designs modern, kid-friendly wind instruments (TooT, jSax, jFlute) for early music education, directly competing with the re.corder in the inclusive K-12 music education market with similar accessibility and ease-of-play positioning.
• Yamaha: Yamaha offers competing digital wind instruments (YDS-150 digital saxophone, WX5 wind MIDI controller) and is the dominant recorder manufacturer globally, making it both a direct competitor and a benchmark in the recorder category ARTinoise targets.
• Akai Professional: Akai's EWI series (EWI Solo, EWI 5000) are the most established electronic wind instruments on the market, offering breath-controlled MIDI wind controllers that directly compete with re.corder and zefiro in the same product category.
• Roland: Roland's Aerophone (AE-20, AE-05) is a digital wind instrument combining traditional fingering with electronic sound generation, directly comparable to the re.corder's hybrid acoustic/digital concept and targeting overlapping musicians and educators.

Broad incumbents

• Mollenhauer: Mollenhauer is a heritage German recorder and early-wind instrument maker with deep distribution in European music education; relevant as an established incumbent in the same instrument family the re.corder targets.
• Aulos: Aulos is one of the world's largest traditional recorder manufacturers and a long-standing incumbent in the soprano recorder category that the re.corder modernizes; they compete primarily on price in education markets.

Others

• Thomann: Thomann is ARTinoise's largest distribution partner and also operates Thomann-own-brand instruments; while a partner rather than a competitor, it is the dominant channel shaping the company's global reach and pricing.
• AudioModeling: AudioModeling develops SWAM physical-modeling virtual instruments and is already a technology partner on re.corder OPERA; it represents the underlying software/sound engine layer in ARTinoise's premium product ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@artinoise
• Facebookfacebook.com/artinoiseit
• Instagraminstagram.com/artinoise_it
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/artinoise

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Artinoise