Winning composer booed off Ivors stage for criticising bands
Harrison Birtwistle has won his second accolade from the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters in less than a year, scooping the Ivors Classical Music Award at a ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel.
Birtwistle, who picked up two prizes at the British Composer Awards in December, used his acceptance speech at this year’s Ivor Novello Awards to slam the assembled rock and pop musicians for playing their music too loud.
The composer of The Ring Dance of the Nazarene and Night’s Black Bird, asked winners including James Blunt, KT Tunstall and Kaiser Chiefs: “Why is your music so fucking loud? You must be brain-dead”, complaining that he had “never heard so many cliches” as he had witnessed at the awards. He was subsequently booed off stage.
Meanwhile, Rob Lane won the award for Best Television Soundtrack for his score for Elizabeth I and Francis Shaw won Best Original Film Score for Evil.
Ray Davies, formerly of The Kinks, was awarded the Performing Right Society award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music and the Bee Gees received the Academy Fellowship.
The full list of winners is:
Best Song Musically and Lyrically: Suddenly I See - KT Tunstall
PRS Most Performed Work: You’re Beautiful - James Blunt/Amanda Ghost/Sacha Skarbek
Best Television Soundtrack: Elizabeth I - Rob Lane
Outstanding Song Collection: Philip Cunningham/Gillian Gilbert/Peter Hook/Stephen Morris/Bernard Sumner (New Order)
Best Selling UK Single: That’s My Goal - Jorgen Elofsson/Jeremy Godfrey/Bill Padley
Album Award: Employment - Nick Baines/Nick Hodgson/Simon Rix/Andrew White/Ricky Wilson, performed by Kaiser Chiefs
The Ivors Classical Music Award - Sir Harrison Birtwistle CH
International Hit of the Year: You’re Beautiful - James Blunt/Amanda Ghost/Sacha Skarbek
Best Original Film Score: Evil - Francis Shaw
Best Contemporary Song: Wires - Joel Pott/Steven Roberts/Timothy Wanstall/Carey Willetts, performed by Athlete
International Achievement: Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull)
Songwriters of the Year: Damon Albarn/Jamie Hewlett
PRS Outstanding Contribution to British Music: Ray Davies
The Special International Award: Kenny Gamble/Leon Huff
The Academy Fellowship: Barry Gibb/Maurice Gibb (posthumous)/Robin Gibb
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