We were thrilled to see a host of Rayfield Allied artists acknowledged at the 2016 Gramophone Classical Music Awards.
Congratulations to Andrew Parrott, who accepted the Early Music Award for his recording of Taverner’s Western Wind Mass for the Avie label with The Taverner Choir & Players.
Congratulations also to Raphaël Pichon, who with Sabine Devieilhe and his chamber orchestra Pygmalion won the Recital category with their “expressive and incisive” (The Guardian) recording of selected works by Mozart for Erato. This was competing against discs featuring Jonas Kaufmann and Christiane Karg.
Other artists were shortlisted for awards. In the Baroque Instrumental category, Elizabeth Kenny features on Phantasm’s recording for Linn Records of music by Lawes, entitled The Royal Consort. Receiving five stars in The Guardian, Kate Molleson comments: “The ensemble sound is luxuriantly rich, powered by Elizabeth Kenny’s feisty theorbo strumming”.
In the Baroque Vocal category, Matthew Brook sings the bass solos on the Dunedin Consort’s recording of J.S. Bach’s Magnificat in E flat and Cantata No. 63 for Linn – a “spirited Christmas celebration with a difference” (The Irish Times) – whilst Nick Pritchard sings the tenor solos on the Monteverdi Choir’s recording of Bach’s Mass in B Minor for the SDG label, an album hailed for showcasing “Bach at its most glorious and uplifting” (The Financial Times). In a further disc of the B Minor Mass, Peter Harvey performs the bass solos on Concert Copenhagen’s recording for CPO - an album described by Nicholas Kenyon as “exploding Bach’s universal vision into life” (The Observer).
Battling for the Contemporary prize, Pierre-André Valade‘s recording of works by Tristan Murail for the Aeon label was shortlisted. Described by Andrew Clements as “wonderfully diligent performances”, the album features works including Le Partage des Eaux and Contes Cruels performed by both the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra.
Finally, the London Sinfonietta’s recording of Harrison Birtwistle’s Angel Fighter for NMC was also shortlisted in the Contemporary category. Conducted by David Atherton and featuring other works by Birtwistle including In Broken Images and Virelai (Sus une fontayne), the album was Gramophone Editor’s Choice in July 2015, when Arnold Whitall described Birtwistle as “a composer whose music is as vivid and compelling as that of any today”.
To view the full shortlist please click here.
The award ceremony took place on Thursday 15th September and a video recording of the evening is still available for streaming here.
