Ivors nominations for Jon Guy and Gareth Moorcraft

The Ivors Academy has announced the nominations for The Ivors Classical Awards 2025, recognising 27 composers and seven librettists whose work represents the best of contemporary classical music in Britain and Ireland.

The Ivors Academy has announced the 34 composers and librettists who have been nominated for an Ivor Novello Award. The winners will be announced at The Ivors Classical Awards in November, celebrating the best of contemporary classical music.

The winners will be revealed on Tuesday 11 November 2025 at BFI Southbank, London, when nine Ivor Novello Awards will be presented to six category winners. This year’s shortlisted works span orchestral, choral, chamber and community composition, showcasing a range of contemporary voices and perspectives. In addition to the six category awards, three Gift of the Academy awards will be presented – Academy Fellowship, Innovation Award in association with the Musicians’ Union and Outstanding Contribution to Screen Composition.

Hosted by BBC Radio 3 presenters Kate Molleson and Tom McKinney, the ceremony will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s New Music Show at 10.30pm on Saturday 15 November, and available on BBC Sounds. The Ivors Classical Awards are supported by PRS for Music and in association with BBC Radio 3.

Recognising excellence in classical composition

The Ivors Classical Awards celebrate music by British, Irish or UK resident composers. The six categories are judged anonymously, with all identifying information removed from all entered materials seen by the judges. A jury of 30 composer judges from The Ivors Academy considered over 220 works entered for this year’s Awards, resulting in 29 nominated works in the shortlist.

The 2025 shortlist features seven composers nominated for the first time – Ruby Colley, Nneka Cummins, Jon Guy, Luke Mombrea, Lucie Treacher, Anibal Vidal and Nathan Williamson – as well as composers who have previously been nominated or won an Ivor Novello Award or British Composer Award. Previous winners nominated again this year include Julian Anderson, Helen Grime, Gareth Moorcraft and Judith Weir, in addition to two-time winner Robin Haigh and 2024 Academy Fellowship recipient James MacMillan who have both been nominated twice .

This year, the Academy is also crediting librettists with a nomination where they have written new words for a work, as opposed to setting an existing text or poem. Seven librettists are nominated – Grahame Davies, April De Angelis, Helen Eastman, Zoe Gilbert, Paul Griffiths, Megg Nicol and Rachel Warr.

Roberto Neri, Chief Executive of The Ivors Academy, said: “Congratulations to all our nominees, who reflect the outstanding creativity shaping contemporary composition. Their works explore powerful themes of technology, nature, history, our relationships and identity. An Ivor Novello Award is one of the highest honours in music, made unique by recognition from fellow composers.”

2025 nominees

Anibal Vidal | Anna Clyne | April De Angelis | Benjamin Oliver | Bernard Hughes | Bushra El-Turk | Cassandra Miller | Gareth Moorcraft | Grahame Davies | Helen Eastman | Helen Grime | James MacMillan | Jasper Dommett | John Casken | Jon Guy | Jonathan Dove | Judith Weir | Julian Anderson | Laurence Osborn | Lisa Illean | Lucie Treacher | Luke Mombrea | Mark Simpson | Megg Nicol | Nathan Williamson | Nneka Cummins | Paul Griffiths | Rachel Warr | Richard Causton | Robin Haigh | Ruby Colley | Sally Beamish | Will Gregory | Zoe Gilbert

Explore all nominees and secure your tickets for the awards ceremony on 11 November