The Ivors Classical Awards | The Ivors Academy |

The Ivors Classical Awards 14 Nov 2023

The UK's foremost celebration of creative excellence in contemporary classical music and sound art.

Eleven composers have been honoured with Ivor Novello Awards at The Ivors Classical Awards, celebrating the best new classical music and sound art.

The winners were announced during a ceremony hosted by BBC Radio 3’s Hannah Peel and Tom Service at the British Film Institute in London.

BBC Radio 3 will broadcast the ceremony on 18 November in a special edition of the New Music Show and the episode will also be available on BBC Sounds.

Three composers were presented with special Gift of the Academy awards, including John Rutter who was honoured with a Fellowship of The Ivors Academy – the highest accolade the Academy bestows – which sees him join a prestigious list of 24 Fellows including John Adams, Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, Judith Weir CBE and Sting. Tansy Davies was recognised with an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Works Collection, acknowledging her exceptional body of work, and Matthew Herbert received an Ivor Novello Award for Innovation presented in association with the Musicians’ Union.

The Ivors Classical Awards are supported by PRS for Music and BBC Radio 3 are broadcast partners.

See the full list of winners below.

2023 Awards Ceremony

The Ivors Classical Awards took place at the BFI Southbank in London on Tuesday 14 November 2023.

2023 Winners

Recipient

JOHN RUTTER

The Ivors Academy awarded John Rutter with Academy Fellowship acknowledging him as one of the most influential choral composers of our time. Rutter’s music is performed by professional and amateur choirs around the world and has been used to commemorate some of the most significant landmark occasions in recent history, including the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, Prince William and Catherine’s royal wedding, and the coronation of King Charles III.

Listen to John Rutter’s music on Amazon Music, Apple Music and Spotify.

Nominee

DISCO! DISCO! GOOD! GOOD?

composed by Jasper Dommett
for chamber ensemble
13mins

listen on SoundCloud
for more information click here

Nominee

EVEN SWEETNESS CAN SCRATCH THE THROAT

composed by Hannah Kendall
for chamber ensemble
12mins

published in the UK by G Ricordi, Universal Music Publishing

Winner

NÖVÉNYEK

composed by Thomas Adès
for mezzo-soprano and piano sextet
17mins

commissioned by IMS Prussia Cove with the support of the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation; with additional support from The Nicholas Berwin Charitable Trust and The Fidelio Charitable Trust; The Nicholas Boas Charitable Trust, Jonathan Gaisman, Gilbert and Helen McCabe, The Overli Foundation, The Martin Smith Foundation
published in the UK by Faber Music Ltd

for more information and to view the score visit Faber Music’s website

Nominee

STAGGERED NOCTURNE

composed by Luke Bedford
for 14 players and percussion soloist
20mins

commissioned by Philharmonia Orchestra
published in the UK by Universal Edition

Nominee

WHY DO YOU GRIEVE

composed by William Marsey
for chamber ensemble
11mins

commissioned by Oliver Zeffman

listen on Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify and YouTube Music
for more information and to view the score click here

Nominee

KISHTATOS | קישתתוס

composed by Omri Kochavi
for 18 voices
14mins

commissioned by Britten Pears Arts

watch the BBC Singers perform the work, directed by Owain Park, as part of the 2022 Aldeburgh Festival on YouTube

Nominee

LANDSCAPE

composed by Naomi Pinnock
for 6 solo voices
9mins

co-commissioned by WDR and hcmf//

listen to a live recording of the UK premiere by EXAUDI, conducted by James Weeks on SoundCloud

Winner

SOL

composed by Ben Nobuto
for SATB vocal ensemble
6mins

commissioned by the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain

listen on Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify and Youtube
for more information click here

Nominee

ESTUARY SOUND ARK

composed by Matthew Herbert
community project involving young participants; Amy Rose Bryan, Chelsea Joseph, Emily Brewster, Esther-Olivia Odesanmi, Joe Holland, Naomi Rosser, Oliver Starling and Skye Maskell, and sounds collected by the local community in South Essex and North Kent.
30mins

commissioned by Creative Estuary
published in the UK by Bucks Music Group Ltd

Nominee

HEROES

composed by Harry Castle
for chamber orchestra, SATB choir and soprano and baritone soloists
13mins

commissioned by Lucy Kitchener & Jack Murphy, Mount St. Mary’s College

watch the debut performance by Mount St Mary’s College Choir and Orchestra, conducted by Lucy Kitchener, on YouTube

Nominee

IT TAKES A CITY

composed by Toby Young
opera for youth and adult community choirs and professional orchestra, with libretto by Sayan Kent
60mins

commissioned by Armonico Consort

watch a highlights trailer on YouTube
for more information and to purchase a video of the full performance, visit the Armonico Consort on demand website

Winner

SWARM FANFARES

composed by Dobrinka Tabakova
for youth orchestra
8mins

commissioned by Hallé Concerts Society for The Hallé Youth Orchestra and their Music Director Delyana Lazarova
published in the UK by Valonius Press-Schott Music Limited

Nominee

TOGETHER AND APART

composed by Ned Bigham
for youth orchestra and choir
10mins

commissioned by West Sussex Music

watch the West Sussex Youth Orchestra & Choir perform the work, conducted by Adam Barker, on YouTube

Nominee

ANTIGONE: PURE IN HER CRIME

composed by Athanasia Kontou
for chamber orchestra and mezzo-soprano
13mins

commissioned by Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

Nominee

ILOLLI-POP

composed by Alex Paxton
for ensemble and improvising soloist
25mins

commissioned by Ensemble Modern
published in the UK by G Ricordi, Universal Music Publishing

listen on Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify and YouTube Music
for more information click here

Nominee

KA

composed by Bushra El-Turk
for percussion soloist and string orchestra
21mins

commissioned by Wiener Konzerthaus/Wiener KammerOrkest/Britten Pears Arts

for more information and to purchase the score visit the Composers Edition website

Winner

SHOUTING FOREVER INTO THE RECEIVER

composed by Hannah Kendall
for 17 players
14mins

commissioned by Südwestrundfunk through the Donaueschingen festival
published in the UK by G Ricordi, Universal Music Publishing

Nominee

THROUGH THE FADING HOUR

composed by Angela Elizabeth Slater
for chamber orchestra
10mins

commissioned by London Philharmonic Orchestra

watch a performance of the work by LPO soloists and Richard Waters (viola), conducted by Brett Dean, on YouTube

Nominee

ARCHORA

composed by Anna Thorvaldsdottir
for symphony orchestra
19mins

commissioned by BBC Proms and co-commissioned by the LA Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris, Iceland Symphony Orchestra and Klangspuren Schwaz
published in the UK by Chester Music Ltd

listen on Amazon Music, Apple Music and Spotify
for more information and to view the score click here

Winner

CELLO CONCERTO

composed by Brett Dean
for symphony orchestra and solo cello
25mins

commissioned by Sydney Symphony, Berliner Philharmoniker, Swedish Radio SO, Minnesota Orchestra, Amsterdam Cello Biennale, Muziekgebouw Aan ‘t IJ
published in the UK by Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd

for more information and to rent the score visit the Boosey & Hawkes website

Nominee

ELLIPTICS

composed by Emily Howard
for orchestra, soprano and countertenor
24mins

commissioned by BBC Philharmonic
published in the UK by Peters Edition Ltd

listen on Amazon Music, Apple Music and Spotify

Nominee

IN THIS BRIEF MOMENT

composed by Brett Dean
for symphony orchestra and double SATB chorus
49mins

commissioned by Sydney Philharmonia Choirs, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (as one of its CBSO Centenary Commissions), Orchestre National de Lyon, Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España and NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra
published in the UK by Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd

for more information and to rent the score visit the Boosey & Hawkes website

Nominee

SOUND SCULPTURE NO. 7

composed by Simon Knighton
for orchestra
13mins

commissioned by Southbank Sinfonia and Nonclassical

Nominee

ANSWER MACHINE TAPE, 1987

composed by Philip Venables
for solo piano with amplification and KeyScanner device, projection and recorded sound
45mins

commissioned by Zubin Kanga, HCMF, Festival d’Automne à Paris, Time of Music Festival, November Music, Royal Holloway
published in the UK by G Ricordi, Universal Music Publishing

watch Zubin Kanga perform the work at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival on YouTube
for more information click here

Winner

COMME L’ESPOIR/YOU MIGHT ALL DISAPPEAR

composed by Josephine Stephenson
for soprano and guitar
5mins

commissioned by Héloïse Werner with support from the PRS Foundation
published in the UK by Éditions Alphonse Leduc

listen on Amazon Music, Apple Music and Spotify
for more information and to purchase the score visit the Wise Music Classical website

Nominee

CROW ROTATIONS

composed by Larry Goves
for soprano, flute/alto flute, alto saxophone, cello and electronics
35mins

commissioned by Royal Northern College of Music Centre for Practice Research in Science and Music (PRiSM)

for more information and to purchase the score visit the Composers Edition website

Nominee

SILBERBLAU

composed by Matthew Grouse
for guitar and electronics
8mins

commissioned by Sasha Savaloni and Current Resonance

listen on SoundCloud
for more information click here

Nominee

THE BOOK OF THE SEDIMENTS

composed by Newton Armstrong
for soprano and electronic sounds
19mins

commissioned by Juliet Fraser, Arts Council England, PRS Foundation, Vaughan Williams Trust

Winner

LOL

by Olivia Louvel
a site-specific sonic intervention delivered through the public address system of Middlesbrough’s CCTV surveillance network, reflecting the current state of political affairs in Britain, produced with Sound Art Brighton
7mins

commissioned by The Auxiliary

watch snippets of the work here

Nominee

MACHAIR

by Duncan MacLeod
acousmatic soundwalk exploring the traditions and ecology of Uist’s machair on the Isle of Benbecula
34mins

commissioned by Taigh Chearsabhagh Museum & Arts Centre

listen on SoundCloud

Nominee

RITES FOR CROSSING WATER

by Hugh Crewdson Jones and Cevanne Horrocks-Hopayian
outdoor installation, augmented reality book and EP built around instructional texts, imagined as folklore for the future
13mins

commissioned by Ludic Rooms

listen on Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify and YouTube Music
watch the official video on YouTube

Winner

LEAST LIKE THE OTHER: SEARCHING FOR ROSEMARY KENNEDY

composed by Brian Irvine
opera in one act, for soprano, two actors and two opposing ensembles, co-created by Netia Jones
70mins

commissioned by Irish National Opera

watch the rehearsal trailer on YouTube

Nominee

LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE

composed by Joby Talbot
ballet in three acts
105mins

commissioned by The Royal Ballet
published in the UK by Chester Music Ltd

for more information and to watch the trailer visit the Royal Opera House website

Nominee

ORPHEUS

composed by Jasdeep Singh Degun
opera in five acts, for Indian classical continuo and Baroque continuo
150mins

commissioned by Opera North and South Asian Arts-UK

Nominee

THE SCORCHED EARTH TRILOGY

composed by Brian Irvine
three projected street art operas with libretto by John McIlduff
30mins

commissioned by Dumbworld and Irish National Opera

for more information and watch the official trailer click here

Nominee

VIOLET

composed by Tom Coult
opera in one act with libretto by Alice Birch
85mins

commissioned by Britten-Pears Arts and Music Theatre Wales
published in the UK by Faber Music Ltd

to watch a Q&A about the work with Tom visit the Britten-Pears Arts YouTube channel

Recipient

MATTHEW HERBERT

British musician, DJ and producer Matthew Herbert, received the Innovation Award in association with the Musicians’ Union, in recognition of his pioneering work in electronic music and his experimental use of unconventional sounds as instrumentation. He is renowned for mining audio from unique sources, including the environment, the human body, and animals (both dead and alive). His most recent album, The Horse, saw him construct instruments out of a full-sized horse skeleton and was met with critical acclaim. Previously, his work has featured in Eurovision, Yves St Laurent fashion shows, and several films.

Listen to Matthew Herbert’s music on Amazon Music, Apple Music and Spotify.

Recipient

TANSY DAVIES

The Outstanding Works Collection Award, honouring British or Irish composers who have written a consistently exceptional body of classical compositions, was awarded to Tansy Davies, whose works embody elements of rock, funk, disco, bebop, alt-pop and modernism.

Named one of the UK’s most influential people by the Evening Standard’s Progress 1000 in 2015, she has worked with renowned performers and concert houses all over the world, including the BBC Proms, the Royal Opera House, and King’s College Cambridge’s famous Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, broadcast to millions of viewers each year.

Listen to Tansy Davies’ music on Amazon Music, Apple Music and Spotify.