Professor of Composition at Guildhall School Julian Anderson wins prestigious Grawemeyer Award

Julian Anderson, Composer in Residence and Professor of Composition at Guildhall School of Music & Drama, is today announced as the recipient of the 2023 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition for his work Litanies. 

Influenced by the death of an esteemed colleague and the fire of the Notre Dame Cathedral, Litanies received its premiere with cellist Alban Gerhardt and the National Orchestra of France in 2020. The work was co-commissioned by Radio France, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Det Norske Kammerokester, The Swedish Chamber Orchestra and Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne. 

Julian Anderson, winner of The 2023 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, says:
“I am overjoyed and deeply honoured to be the recipient of the 2023 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition.  My concerto Litanies was inspired by the special qualities of cellist Alban Gerhardt, to whom it is dedicated.  Two unrelated tragedies occurred whilst I was composing: the death of my dear colleague Oliver Knussen and the burning down of Notre Dame in Paris.  The ‘Litanies’ of the title sing out both the loss of a dear friend and the destruction of a world monument.  I am deeply grateful to the panel of the Grawemeyer Award for their recognition of a work which is both an act of commemoration and a celebration of musical beauty.” 

Marc Satterwhite, director of the Grawemeyer Music Award, says: “Litanies explores virtually every sound a cello and orchestra can make together. It spans a vast emotional range and is constantly inventive. It is always towards an expressive end, and never for the sake of novelty.”

Since 2007, Julian has been a Professor of Composition and Composer-in-Residence at Guildhall School of Music & Drama. He has also taught music composition at Harvard University and Royal College of Music. A former pupil of John Lambert, Alexander Goehr and Tristan Murail, Julian’s work has received premieres from orchestras globally. In 2021 he was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his outstanding service to music.

The Grawemeyer Awards honour seminal ideas in world order, psychology, education and religion. In Spring 2023, the recipients will visit Louisville, KY to accept their awards and give a presentation on their winning ideas.