Established in 1977, the Gramophone Classical Music Awards is an annual event that aims to acknowledge outstanding accomplishments in the classical music recording industry. This includes exceptional solo performers, musical groups, and record labels.
In its 100th anniversary year, Gramophone magazine hosted the awards ceremony in London on October 4, where they announced the winners from their 2023 shortlist.
Dame Felicity Lott, a beloved soprano from the UK, received the Lifetime Achievement Award for her remarkable career, which included over 100 recordings, noteworthy interpretations of Mozart and Strauss operatic roles, and her dedication to introducing a new generation to classical music through her involvement with Graham Johnson's Songmaker's Almanac.
The Recording of the Year award was presented to Fabio Luisi and the Danish National Symphony Orchestra for their recording of Nielsen's Symphonies Nos 4 & 5 on Deutsche Grammophon.
French soprano Véronique Gens was honored as the Artist of the Year, celebrating her significant contributions to French opera and song.
American violinist Stella Chen, recognized as the Young Artist of the Year, demonstrated exceptional talent and promise for the future. Her accolade reflected her achievements, including winning First Prize at the 2019 Queen Elizabeth Competition and her acclaimed album 'Stella x Schubert' on Platoon. Stella also performed at the ceremony alongside the London Mozart Players, playing Mozart's Rondo in C, K373.
The Orchestra of the Year award, the only one determined by public vote, was given to the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen. Artistic Director Paavo Järvi expressed gratitude to the public and his colleagues in a video acceptance speech.
BIS, a Swedish label celebrating its 50th year, received the Label of the Year award. The founder, Robert von Bahr, expressed his humility and long-held aspiration for this recognition.
The Concept Album Award was presented to British mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston and theorbo-player Toby Carr for their album 'Battle Cry: She Speaks.' This album features a collection of modern and 16th and 17th-century works that reexamine and rebalance the historical focus on female abandonment and lament in early music.
In the category awards, British violist Timothy Ridout, also a VC Artist, won the Concerto Award for his recording of Elgar's 'Viola Concerto,' a rarely-performed arrangement of the classic Cello Concerto for viola by Lionel Tertis. The recording was made with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Martyn Brabbins.
The Opera Award went to the London Philharmonic Orchestra's recording of Tippett's 'The Midsummer Marriage' under the direction of Edward Gardner. This recording marked the first commercially available release of the work in 50 years.
The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra's album of works by composer Lotta Wennäkoski, conducted by Nicholas Collon, won in the Contemporary category. Krystian Zimerman's recording of piano works by Szymanowski received the Piano category award, and Nurit Stark's collection of Hungarian music for solo violin and viola won in the Instrumental category.
