The Gramophone Classical Music Awards returned to London on 15 October, bringing together leading artists, ensembles, and record labels to celebrate the year’s finest achievements in classical recording. Among the winners announced at the De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms, Sir Simon Rattle made history as the first artist ever to receive Artist of the Year twice — a milestone in the long history of these prestigious awards.
Recording of the Year: Raphaël Pichon and Pygmalion
Raphaël Pichon and his ensemble Pygmalion won both Recording of the Year and the Choral Award for their interpretation of Bach’s Mass in B minor on Harmonia Mundi, a recording widely praised for its clarity, vitality, and expressive depth.
Lifetime Achievement and new generations
The Lifetime Achievement Award honoured Sir Thomas Allen, recognising more than five decades of artistic excellence on the world’s opera and concert stages.
At the other end of the career spectrum, María Dueñas — aged 22 — was named Young Artist of the Year and also won the Instrumental Award for her recording of Paganini’s 24 Caprices, confirming her growing prominence among the new generation of virtuosos. She performed during the ceremony alongside other laureates, including baritone Huw Montague Rendall, who received the Voice and Ensemble Award for his debut album Contemplation, and pianist George Xiaoyuan Fu, winner of the Concept Album Award.
Category winners
The Song Award went to Robin Tritschler and Sean Shibe, while Alexandre Kantorow received the Piano Award. The publicly voted Orchestra of the Year was the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, and Bru Zane was named Label of the Year. The Early Music Award was shared by Ensemble Dragma, Ensemble Peregrina, and Agnieszka Budzińska-Bennett.
In the Chamber category, Krystian Zimerman, Maria Nowak, Katarzyna Budnik, and Yuya Okamoto won for their recording of Brahms’s Piano Quartets. The Contemporary Award went to Sir George Benjamin, while Joanna Mallwitz and the Konzerthausorchester Berlin received the Orchestral Award. Vilde Frang and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin were honoured in the Concerto category, and the Opera Award went to Lise Davidsen, Gerald Finley, Edward Gardner, and the Norwegian National Opera for Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer.
A celebration of eras and generations
Reflecting on this year’s results, Gramophone editor Martin Cullingford highlighted the diversity of the winners, noting that the albums “celebrate a wonderful breadth of the incredible music-making that has defined classical recording over the past year, spanning eras, styles and generations.”
Now approaching its 50th edition, the Gramophone Classical Music Awards remain among the most respected honours in the industry, bridging tradition and innovation while reaffirming the vitality of recorded classical music.
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