1 minute read

The Ivors Classical Music Award

Mark-Anthony Turnage

Mark-Anthony Turnage once described his approach to music-making by declaring: “I always want to do something different.”

Advertisement

And rarely can a classical musician have been truer to their word. Because, from the moment he started experimenting with composition aged nine, right up to 2021, Turnage has brought a truly unique approach to the classical realm.

The composer – who had his breakthrough moment with his first opera, 1988’s Greek – has long drawn from a huge variety of influences in his work. From his earliest pieces, jazz has proved a huge source of inspiration, while over the years he has also absorbed elements of everything from Led Zeppelin to Beyoncé, establishing himself as a contemporary, hugely relevant musician able to reach beyond classical’s hardcore audience.

But, at the same time, he has acquired the accolades and positions reserved for musicians of the very highest stature. He has been the Composer in Association with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the English National Opera, Composer in Residence for the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Associate Composer for the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Mead Composer In Residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Research Fellow in Composition at the Royal College of Music. His work has been performed at the BBC Proms, Sadler’s Wells, the Royal Ballet and the Royal Opera. He has won at the Olivier Awards, the South Bank Show Awards and been honoured with a CBE.

But his subject matter often comes from less rarefied spaces. Never afraid of political or social commentary, he has written pieces based on everything from the outbreak of World War I (2013’s orchestral work Passchendaele) to the tragic life and death of model, actress, celebrity Anna Nicole Smith (2011’s opera Anna Nicole).

And now, his storied, singular career arrives at this hugely-deserved Ivors win. As for what comes next, you can be sure of one thing: it will be anything but ordinary…

This article is from: