When the votes were counted for this year’s Gramophone Hall of Fame, I confess to being particularly delighted by who was at the top. (I can assure any readers aware of my particular fondness for classical guitar that there was no bias!) Every person on the list has helped shape – or is shaping – the classical recording world, leaving a legacy that will enrich all that follows. Few, however, had such a profound impact on the very history of their instrument as Spanish guitarist Andrés Segovia. When he began his career he was encouraged, both by his family and professors who detected a great musical gift, to devote his gifts to a more established instrument. He thankfully ignored them and, during a long career of tireless advocacy on stage and in the studio, established the guitar as a concert-hall instrument with a magnificent modern and rediscovered repertoire. His discography has aged well, his warm, rounded tone wonderfully captured by the early microphones he sat before, and remains a rich reference point for all.

Few artists could thus better define what our Hall of Fame is about than the great Segovia. He enters the Hall of Fame in good company, including both his fellow 49 new members and the 50 from last year. Inviting today’s leading artists to comment on what made these figures so important proved fascinating – we may think of the influence their recordings have had on us as listeners, but perhaps their greatest impact is to be found in the next generation of artists, those they inspired, or mentored, or encouraged with well-chosen words at a crucial point.

Thank you to everybody who cast the thousands of votes at 
gramophone.co.uk; the votes tended to focus on performers and so, in our 90th-anniversary year, we took the liberty of adding five visionary industry figures, whose contribution transformed the recording world but who, by the nature of their behind-the-scenes roles, are in danger of being forgotten. The rest were up to you – we enjoyed your choice.

martin.cullingford@haymarket.com