Choral composer John Rutter has been awarded the Academy Fellowship, the highest honour bestowed by the Ivors Academy. The Fellowship will be celebrated at The Ivors Classical Awards which take place on 14 November 2023 at BFI Southbank in London.
Rutter's hymns, anthems and much-celebrated Christmas carol arrangements are performed by professional and amateur choirs all over the world, and have featured in such landmark occasions as the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, the two most recent royal weddings and the Coronation of King Charles III earlier this year. Rutter previously received an Ivor Novello award in 2007 at the Academy’s songwriting ceremony, The Ivors, to recognise his outstanding contribution to classical music.
The Ivors Academy Fellowships recognise 'excellence and impact in the art and craft of music creation', and have been awarded to 24 musicians and composers since 2000. The current list of Fellows includes John Adams, Sir Malcolm Arnold, John Barry, Don Black, Pierre Boulez, Kate Bush, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Peter Gabriel, Sir Barry Gibb, Sir Elton John, Annie Lennox, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Tim Rice, Judith Weir and Sting.
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Tom Gray, chair of The Ivors Academy, said: 'John Rutter’s compositions are brilliant and emotionally resonant. He is a master of choral music, creating moments of soaring beauty and transcendence. He has inspired listeners and choirs across the globe and truly deserves to be recognised with our highest honour, Fellowship of The Ivors Academy.'
John Rutter said: 'I am deeply grateful to the Ivors Academy for this wonderful and completely unexpected honour, which I shall cherish in all the days ahead. It will certainly spur me on in my future work!'
Earlier this year, The Ivors Academy re-launched The Ivors Composer Awards as The Ivors Classical Awards to celebrate 'creative excellence in composition for contemporary classical and sound art'. The Ivors Composer Awards title was used for 20 years, and recognised jazz composing as well as classical and sound art. The Academy aims to establish The Ivors Jazz Awards in 2024.
The Ivors Classical Awards 2023 will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and Sounds in the 'New Music Show' on 18 November at 10pm GMT.