The Ivors Classical Awards: celebrating composers

The Ivors Classical Awards 12 Nov 2024

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 classical music and sound art.

The Ivors Academy has revealed the winners of 11 Ivor Novello Awards at The Ivors Classical Awards, celebrating the best new classical music and sound art by British, Irish and UK resident composers.

The winners were announced during a ceremony hosted by BBC Radio 3’s Kate Molleson and Tom Service at the British Film Institute in London. BBC Radio 3 will broadcast the ceremony on 16 November from 10:30pm in a special edition of the New Music Show and the episode will also be available on BBC Sounds.

2024 Winners

Recipient

ERROLLYN WALLEN

Errollyn Wallen‘s music has been central to major national events, including the London 2012 Paralympic Games, BBC Proms, and the Jubilees of Elizabeth II. In 2013, she became the first female composer to receive an Ivor Novello Award for classical music, and this year, she was named Master of the King’s Music. Known for her blend of personal and historical themes, Wallen’s works range from Meet Me at Harold Moores, inspired by Ella Fitzgerald and JS Bach, to Mighty River, marking the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act in England, and her reimagined Jerusalem for the 2020 BBC Proms, reframed the hymn through the ears of the Windrush generation to highlight the musical connections between Britain and the Commonwealth.

Nominee

MITTERNACHTSLIED

composed by Julian Anderson
for soprano and ensemble
5mins

commissioned by Freundeskreis Hauskonzert Musik für Heute
published in the UK by Schott Music

Nominee

SONGS OF NADIA ANJUMAN

composed by Richard Blackford
for soprano and string orchestra
18mins

commissioned by Britten Sinfonia
published in the UK by Nimbus Music Publishing

Nominee

THE HEARING TRUMPET

composed by Hilda Paredes
for flute, oboe, bass clarinet, bassoon, horn, percussion and strings
18mins

commissioned by Wigmore Hall
published in the UK by University of York Music Press

Winner

TOMB!

composed by Laurence Osborn
for strings, percussion and piano
20mins

commissioned by Norfolk and Norwich Festival, Cheltenham Festival and Kings Place

Nominee

UNDONE

composed by Soosan Lolavar
for solo de-tuned violin and string ensemble
10mins

Nominee

BATTER MY HEART

composed by Joanna Marsh
for SSAATTBB choir
6mins

commissioned by The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn

Nominee

HALLELUJAH AMEN

composed by Oliver Leith
for mixed voices
10mins

commissioned by Parabola Foundation
published in the UK by Faber Music

Nominee

MAY SONG

composed by Lawrence Dunn
for 6 voices and fixed media
16mins

commissioned by EXAUDI

Winner

THE CITY, FULL OF PEOPLE

composed by Cassandra Miller
for mixed choir of 16 singers
16mins

commissioned by Éamonn Quinn of Louth Contemporary Music Society, jointly funded by Louth Contemporary Music Society and The Robert D. Bielecki Foundation
published in the UK by Faber Music

Nominee

14 WEEKS

composed by Jane Stanley
for SATB chorus
9mins

commissioned by The Glasgow School of Art Choir
with libretto by Judith Bishop

Winner

A CHILDREN’S GUIDE TO ANARCHY (AN EASTERHOUSE CHILDREN’S MANIFESTO)

composed by Brian Irvine
for ensemble and singers
19mins

commissioned by Dumbworld and Red Note Ensemble
with libretto by John McIlduff and children of Oakwood Primary School, Scotland
performed by Red Note Ensemble and children of Oakwood Primary School

Nominee

FLY/WORK/GROW

composed by Hannah Conway
for amateur child and adult vocal soloists, operatic soprano, pro-vocalist, recorded speech, violin, cello and piano
16mins

commissioned by CHAMPIONS and Sound Voice
with libretto by Hazel Gould

Nominee

IN YOUR HANDS

composed by Amy Bryce
for youth voices: two SATB choirs with additional upper voices, piano and percussion
12mins

commissioned by London Youth Choirs

Nominee

TUXEDO: DUST BOWL #3

composed by Hannah Kendall
for Massed Ensemble of Harmonicas and Optional SATB Voices
10mins

published in the UK by G Ricordi, Universal Music Publishing

Nominee

POUND OF CURE

composed by Ryan Latimer
for string orchestra
8mins

commissioned by Britten Sinfonia

Winner

THE HORSE

composed by Matthew Herbert
for orchestra, horse skeleton and electronics
80mins

published in the UK by Bucks Music Group

Nominee

THE SINGING TREE

composed by Christian Mason
for five solo voices, children’s choir and ensemble
40mins

commissioned by Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
published in the UK by Breitkopf & Härtel

Nominee

THE STONES IN THE RIVER BY OUR CAMP IN THE FOREST / THE SPACE ON THE GROUND WHERE WE LAY

composed by Rufus Isabel Elliot
for string ensemble
18mins

commissioned by BBC Radio 3

Nominee

VIOLA CONCERTO ‘THREE GODDESSES’

composed by Edward Gregson
for viola and string orchestra
20mins

commissioned by Presteigne Festival with funds from the Colwinston Charitable Trust
published in the UK by Novello and Co

Nominee

ECHOES

composed by Julian Anderson
for solo baritone, chorus and orchestra
11mins

commissioned by Oliver Zeffman
published in the UK by Schott Music

Winner

HORN CONCERTO

composed by Gavin Higgins
for horn and orchestra
30mins

commissioned by BBC Radio 3 and Philharmonie Zuidnederland
published in the UK by Nimbus Music Publishing

Nominee

I CANNOT LOVE WITHOUT TREMBLING

composed by Cassandra Miller
for viola and orchestra
25mins

Co-commissioned by BBC Radio 3, Brussels Philharmonic, the NAC Orchestra and the SCO, supported by The Viola Commissioning Circle
published in the UK by Faber Music

Nominee

IN SPE CONTRA SPEM

composed by Brett Dean
for two sopranos and orchestra
30mins

co-commissioned by London Philharmonic Orchestra with the support of the Boltini Trust
published in the UK by Boosey & Hawkes

Nominee

MOSAICS

composed by Colin Matthews
for orchestra
24mins

published in the UK by Faber Music

Nominee

BYOYOMI

composed by Rūta Vitkauskaitė
for clarinet and string quartet
14mins

commissioned by CRAS

Nominee

ENGLISH DANCING MASTER

composed by Leo Chadburn
for pre-recorded voices and string quartet
26mins

commissioned by Phaedra Ensemble

Nominee

LAKES, MISTS, BATS, DAGGERS, AND FOUNTAINS

composed by Laurence Osborn
for string quartet
20mins

commissioned by Wigmore Hall

Winner

THE MOUTH

composed by Rebecca Saunders
for soprano and tape
20mins

commissioned by Annie Claire for ManiFeste Festival Paris
published in the UK by Edition Peters

Nominee

TIDING II (SILENTIUM)

composed by Lisa Illean
for soprano saxophone, percussion, piano and electronics
17mins

commissioned by SWR for Donaueschinger Musiktage
published in the UK by Faber Music

Nominee

A LADDER IS NOT THE ONLY KIND OF TIME

by Benjamin Tassie
Three water-powered musical instruments installed in the historic Rivelin Valley in Sheffield accompanied by film, field-recording and live performance to explore ideas of heritage, place, and our changing relationship with the landscape
50mins

Winner

EACH TINY DROP

by Dan Jones
Sonic accompaniment to Risham Syed’s interactive water ritual on the banks of the River Medlock commissioned by Factory International to open the Manchester International Festival and celebrate connections between Manchester and Pakistan
210minutes

Nominee

ORASAIGH

by Duncan MacLeod
Acousmatic binaural soundwalk composition inspired by the landscape around the tidal island of Orasaigh, located on the coast of South Uist at Boisdale
46minutes

Nominee

PO(E)SIES

by Una Lee
Live performance work for close-harmony quartet and spoken voice, reincarnating the Korean ancient poetry form ‘Hyangga’
35minutes

Nominee

THE BIRD THAT NEVER FLEW

by Hanna Tuulikki
Place-responsive performance exploring Glasgow Cathedral’s roots in ornithological entanglements and to raise the alarm for critically endangered birds
42minutes

Nominee

CALLS TO THIS NUMBER ARE BEING DIVERTED

composed by Matthew Grouse
music theatre for two soloists and an ensemble of three
90mins

commissioned by Aarhus Unge Tonekunstnere

Nominee

ITCH

composed by Jonathan Dove
opera for a cast of eight singers and twelve players
100mins

commissioned by James Clutton for Opera Holland Park with support from the Canadian Opera Company
with libretto by Alasdair Middleton
published in the UK by Edition Peters

Nominee

PICTURE A DAY LIKE THIS

composed by George Benjamin
opera for a cast of five singers and twenty one players
60mins

co-commissioned and co-produced by the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Royal Opera House Covent Garden London, Opéra national du Rhin, Opéra Comique, and les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg, Oper Köln and Teatro di San Carlo
with libretto by Martin Crimp
published in the UK by Faber Music

Nominee

THE FAGGOTS AND THEIR FRIENDS BETWEEN REVOLUTIONS

composed by Philip Venables
music theatre for fifteen mixed performers
90mins

commissioned by Factory International, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Bregenzer Festspiele, the Southbank Centre and NYU Skirball in association with Holland Festival

Winner

WOMAN AT POINT ZERO

composed by Bushra El-Turk
opera for two voices, ancient folk instruments and pre-recorded audio samples
60mins

commissioned by LOD muziektheater (BE), co-produced by Royal Opera House, Shubbak Festival, Britten Pears Arts, Festival d’Aix, Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, & All Aria’s Festival (de Singel Antwerpen, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen, Concertgebouw Brugge & Transparant)
with libretto by Stacy Hardy

Recipient

GAVIN BRYARS

Gavin Bryars, a former philosophy student turned jazz bassist, helped pioneer British free improvisation and approaches composition as a vast creative field. His groundbreaking works The Sinking of the Titanic and Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet explore time and memory, with the latter gaining new life in a 1993 version featuring Tom Waits that was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize. Known for integrating “music which refers to other music,” Bryars’ compositions evoke reflective, timeless experiences that remain accessible yet deeply inventive.

Recipient

ROXANNA PANUFNIK

Roxanna Panufnik‘s breakthrough piece, Westminster Mass, was commissioned to honour Cardinal Basil Hume and established her reputation for expressive, clear word-setting and harmonic depth. Panufnik’s choral compositions range from her Tallinn Mass, featuring Estonian poetry, to the Zen-inspired Wild Ways, which integrates a Japanese shakuhachi flute. A devoted advocate for choral music, she hopes to inspire young singers as a Patron of the Diamond Fund for Choristers. Her broader repertoire includes operas and instrumental works that explore global musical traditions, such as Four World Seasons and Abraham, which unite faiths and cultures in a celebration of shared beauty.