The Ivors Academy announced that Errollyn Wallen will become an Academy Fellow, the highest honour it bestows. Wallen will be inducted into Fellowship at The Ivors Classical Awards which will take place on 12 November at BFI Southbank in London.

Wallen receives Academy Fellowship in recognition of her contribution to contemporary classical music with a catalogue of 22 operas and a range of orchestral, chamber and vocal compositions. Wallen became the first woman to receive an Ivor Novello award for classical music in 2013 at the Academy’s songwriting and screen composing ceremony, The Ivors, and received a British Composer Award from the Academy in 2005.

She was the first black woman to have a work featured in the Proms and her music has been used at national occasions including the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games 2021 and Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden and Diamond Jubilees. In August this year, Wallen became Master of The King’s Music, an honorary appointment made by the Sovereign. The appointment is conferred on a musician who has added to the musical life of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.

Wallen said: ‘I am deeply touched to receive this Academy Fellowship and am most honoured to join the twenty-seven illustrious musicians who are my predecessors. I would like to take this opportunity to give thanks for the guidance and encouragement I have received along my journey to becoming a composer — and for the lively artistic community of which I am part.’

Robert Neri, CEO of The Ivors Academy, said: ‘By bestowing Errollyn with The Ivors Academy’s highest honour, we not only celebrate her remarkable talent but also reaffirm our mission to protect, empower and champion composers and songwriters. It is fitting that she joins the extraordinary roll call of Fellows from across music who have left an indelible mark on both culture and our lives.’

The Ivors Classical Awards are supported by PRS for Music and will take place on 12 November. BBC Radio 3 will broadcast the ceremony on 16 November in a special edition of the New Music Show and the episode will also be available on BBC Sounds.