(FORTUNE Small Business) – Growing up, Rich Zirinsky, the co-founder of Adventure Music (adventure-music.com), never played an instrument, but he was passionate about music. To date, he has collected 17,000 albums and 18,000 CDs. "I became obsessed with everything I listened to," he says. Especially Brazilian rhythms. Zirinsky, 40, eventually took over his family's real estate business, but he dreamed about launching a label dedicated to the music of Brazil.

In 2003, Zirinsky and two partners finally made it happen. Adventure has put out 14 albums so far, and one of its first, Noite Clara, by guitarist Ricardo Silveira, was nominated for a Latin Grammy in the summer. So far the label has gotten the most attention for Ouro Negro, a double-CD tribute to legendary Brazilian composer Moacir Santos recorded three years ago in Rio de Janeiro and released in the U.S. in May by Adventure. Supervised by Santos himself, the recording revisits his best work from the 1960s and shows how he influenced a generation of Brazilian artists by mixing elements of classical music with Afro-Latin grooves. "This has brought tremendous attention to Moacir's music," says Zirinsky. Not a bad start for a guy with no musical training. —BRIAN O'KEEFE