ECM Records (Edition of Contemporary Music) is an independent record label founded by Karl Egger, Manfred Eicher and Manfred Scheffner in Munich in 1969. While ECM is best known for jazz music, the label has released a variety of recordings, and ECM's artists often refuse to acknowledge boundaries between genres. The label has become synonymous with a distinctive aesthetic philosophy encapsulated in its motto: the most beautiful sound next to silence, taken from a 1971 review of ECM releases in Coda, a Canadian jazz magazine.

The first ECM release produced by Manfred Scheffner was pianist Mal Waldron's 1969 recording Free at Last. From this beginning, the label went on to release recordings by many prominent jazz musicians, including Paul Bley, Keith Jarrett, Jan Garbarek, Pat Metheny, Gary Burton, Chick Corea, Charlie Haden, John Abercrombie, Dave Liebman, Eberhard Weber, Egberto Gismonti, Dave Holland, Terje Rypdal, Stefano Bollani and Ralph Towner.

Manfred Eicher continues to take an active interest in the music released by ECM, acting as producer of the vast majority of its recordings. His hands-on approach is reflected in the label's unique recording process: The typical ECM session is just three days: two days to record, one day to mix. This efficiency, combined with meticulous attention to sound quality, has helped establish ECM's reputation for pristine audio production.

The label expanded its scope in 1984 with the ECM New Series created to document Western classical works, featuring composers from the early (Thomas Tallis, Carlo Gesualdo, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina) to the contemporary (John Cage, Elliott Carter, Steve Reich and John Adams). This classical series has become particularly noted for its relationship with Estonian composer Arvo Pärt and other contemporary classical artists.

ECM's distinctive visual identity is as important as its sonic one, with album covers profiled in two books: Sleeves of Desire and Windfall Light, both published by Lars Müller. The label's aesthetic approach extends beyond music into visual art, film collaborations, and cultural projects, making ECM as much a cultural institution as a record label.