The Gramophone Awards – the world’s most influential classical music prizes – were announced today at London’s Dorchester Hotel.

This year’s Recording of the Year – chosen in a secret ballot by a special panel of critics from the 16 category-winning discs, themselves selected by Gramophone’s 50-strong reviewers panel – has been named as “Infelix Ego”, the 13th (and final) volume of the Byrd Edition, performed by the British vocal ensemble The Cardinall’s Musick under Andrew Carwood, on Hyperion. It is only the second time an Early Music recording has won the Recording of the Year.

The Artist of the Year – the result of an international, online poll – was named as American mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato, who beat off a formidable list of fellow nominees included Plácido Domingo, Lang Lang and Antonio Pappano.

Pianist Alfred Brendel was given the Lifetime Achievement Award, while the Special Achievement Award was given to the founder of the Chandos label, Brian Couzens.

The Argentinean cellist Sol Gabetta was named Young Artist of the Year, and James Inverne gave his Editor’s Choice Award to Marin Alsop’s recording of Bernstein’s Mass on Naxos. Label of the Year was announced as the Scotland-based Linn Records, and André Rieu received the Specialist Classical Chart Award, a reflection of the dominance in the chart of his "Forever Vienna" album throughout much of the past year.

The full list of category winners – with links to the Gramophone review and to where you can buy the recording – are below. And you can listen to excerpts from these recordings – plus much more – on the new Gramophone Player (see "Launch The Gramophone Player" box, right)!

Baroque Instrumental
Vivaldi - ‘The French Connection’
La Serenissima / Adrian Chandler
Avie AV2178
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Baroque Vocal
Lotti. Zelenka. Bach - Choral works
Baltasar-Neumann Chorus and Ensemble / Thomas Hengelbrock
Deutsche Harmonia Mundi 8869 752684-2
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Chamber In association with the Eilat Chamber Music Festival
Beethoven - Sonatas for Piano and Violin
Isabelle Faust vn; Alexander Melnikov pf
Harmonia Mundi HMC90 2025/7
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Choral
Verdi - Messa da Requiem
Soloists; Chorus and Orchestra of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia /
Antonio Pappano
EMI 698936-2
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Concerto
Elgar - Violin Concerto
Thomas Zehetmair vn; Hallé Orchestra / Sir Mark Elder
Hallé CDHLL7521
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Contemporary
Adès - The Tempest
Soloists; Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden / Thomas Adès
EMI 695234-2
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DVD Documentary
Leonard Bernstein – ‘Reflections’
A film by Peter Rosen
EuroArts 307 8728
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DVD Performance
Purcell - The Fairy Queen
Soloists; OAE / William Christie
Opus Arte OA1031D
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Early Music
Byrd ‘Infelix Ego’
The Cardinall’s Musick / Andrew Carwood
Hyperion CDA67779
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Historic Archive
Beethoven - 32 Piano Sonatas. Eroica Variations etc
Friedrich Gulda (pf)
Orfeo C808109L
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DVD Reissue
Vladimir Horowitz - Complete Original Jacket Collection
Horowitz
Sony Classical 88697 57500-2
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Instrumental In association with Steinway
“Volodos in Vienna”
Arcadi Volodos (pf)
Sony Classical 86975 6887-2
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Opera
Wagner - Götterdämmerung
Soloists; Choruses; Hallé Orchestra / Sir Mark Elder
Hallé CDHLD7525
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Orchestral
Dvorak Symphonic Poems
Czech PO / Sir Charles Mackerras
Supraphon SU4012-2
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Recital
Rossini “Colbran, the Muse”
Joyce DiDonato (mez); Chorus and Orchestra of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia / Eduardo Müller
Virgin Classics 694790-6
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Solo Vocal
Schubert - Winterreise
Mark Padmore (ten); Paul Lewis (pf)
Harmonia Mundi HMU90 7484
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