About the 2025 Ivors Classical Awards
For decades, The Ivors Academy has stood as the pinnacle of songwriting and composing recognition in the UK. While the main Ivor Novello Awards often capture headlines for popular music and film scores, their equally prestigious sibling, The Ivors Classical Awards, shines a vital spotlight on excellence in contemporary classical music.
Held annually, these awards are a crucial barometer for the future of British and Irish composition, celebrating new works and the composers who create them. If you follow the world of classical music, understanding these awards is key to discovering the genre’s next great innovators.
What Makes the Ivors Classical Awards Unique?
Presented by The Ivors Academy (formerly BASCA), The Ivors Classical Awards are specifically dedicated to honouring outstanding achievement in classical composition. What sets them apart is the judging process: they are judged by composers for composers. This peer-to-peer recognition lends the awards immense weight and authority within the music community, prioritizing craft, creativity, and artistic risk.
The focus is squarely on compositions that premiered during the eligibility period, ensuring the awards drive the conversation around new music, rather than just celebrating established repertoire. Winning an Ivor Novello Award—the iconic bronze statuette—in the classical categories places the recipient among a legendary roll call of the UK’s most influential classical composers.
The 2025 Ivors Classical Awards – Recognising Excellence: Gift of the Academy Awards
Beyond the competitive categories, The Ivors Classical Awards also present “Gift of the Academy” Awards, recognising lifetime achievement and outstanding contributions to the art form. The 2025 ceremony honoured three truly exceptional talents:
2025 Academy Fellowship
The Academy Fellowship was awarded to composer and producer Anne Dudley, a celebrated figure known for her versatile work in both classical and popular music, as well as film scores. Dudley is also a founding member of the electronic music group The Art of Noise and an Oscar-winner for her original score for the 1997 film The Full Monty. To explore the extensive career of this new Fellow of the Ivors Academy in depth, please visit her Anne Dudley’s official website.
2025 Outstanding Contribution to Screen Composition
The Outstanding Contribution to Screen Composition was presented to Debbie Wiseman OBE, acknowledging her profound and enduring impact on composition for film and television. Wiseman currently serves as Classic FM’s Composer in Residence and is consistently voted the most popular living composer in the Classic FM Hall of Fame. Find out more about her work, including her scores for Wolf Hall and Wilde, on Debbie Wiseman OBE’s official website.
2025 Innovation Award
The Innovation Award was awarded to the virtuoso sitarist and composer Anoushka Shankar, celebrating her boundary-pushing creativity and cross-genre work. A singular artist, Shankar is a multi-Grammy nominee and was the first Indian musician to perform live or serve as a presenter at the Grammy Awards. Learn more about her music and activism on Anoushka Shankar’s official website.
Spotlight on Composition: the 2025 Ivors Classical Awards Categories
The core of the ceremony lies in the six nominated categories, which showcase the incredible diversity of contemporary work. Composers and librettists are celebrated across various platforms, recognising that innovation happens everywhere from the concert hall to community projects.
The 2025 Ivors Classical Awards winners demonstrated this breadth of talent across categories:
| Category | Winning Composition | Composer / Librettist |
| Best Chamber Ensemble Composition | Invocación n.2: A Kintsugi Resurrection | Anibal Vidal |
| Best Choral Composition | Orbits | Anna Clyne |
| Best Community and Participation Composition (in association with ABRSM) | Uprising (Community Opera) | Jonathan Dove (Composer) & April De Angelis (Librettist) |
| Best Large Ensemble Composition | Finding gills [when they try to drown you] | Nneka Cummins |
| Best Orchestral Composition (in association with Dorico) | Folk (for Soprano and Orchestra) | Helen Grime (Composer) & Zoe Gilbert (Librettist) |
| Best Small Chamber Composition | Black Gold | Luke Mombrea |
These winning works confirm the bold and brilliant state of contemporary classical music today, with compositions ranging from opera addressing the climate crisis (Uprising) to innovative pieces using electronics and complex instrumentation (Finding gills [when they try to drown you] and Black Gold).
Driving the Future of Classical Music
The ongoing support from organisations like PRS for Music and the partnership with BBC Radio 3 ensures these important works reach a wider audience. The Ivors Classical Awards are more than just a ceremony; they are a vital engine for the commissioning, performance, and appreciation of new contemporary classical music.
By celebrating the boldest and most creative voices, The Ivors Academy cements the UK and Ireland’s reputation as a world-leading hub for musical innovation. They ensure that the legacy of composition remains dynamic, relevant, and exciting for generations to come.
The 2025 Ivors Classical Awards – References and Further Information
This article was compiled using information from the following sources: