Grammys 2025: The nominations announced

The 2025 Grammy Nominations have been revealed over the weekend, with classical musicians nominated for a variety of categories, including film scores, video game scores and other classical categories. The ceremony will takes place on February 2nd.

Magic Classical favourites Zimmer, Kris Bowers, Trent Reznor are all in the film soundtrack category this year. It's great to see Pinar Toprak, who was the first female composer of a Marvel film, nominated for her soundtrack to videogame Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. It's the third time Bear McCreary has been nominated for a Grammy for Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media making him nominated for every year the award has existed! Will he win it this year?

The list has a few fun surprises including a bluegrass version of Rhapsody in Blue by Bela Flek and Ferde Grofe!

We've been loving Sibelius's Karelia Suite, by the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra as well as Bach's Goldberg Variations by Víkingur Ólafsson and Yo-Yo Ma, Leonidas Kavakos & Emanuel Ax brilliant Beethoven For Three album so it's great to see them all pick up well deserved nominations.

The full list is available at grammy.com while our abridged list of highlighted nominees is below…

Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media (Includes Film And Television)

American Fiction — Laura Karpman, composer

Challengers — Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, composers

The Color Purple — Kris Bowers, composer

Dune: Part Two — Hans Zimmer, composer

Shōgun — Nick Chuba, Atticus Ross & Leopold Ross, composers

Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora — Pinar Toprak, composer

God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla — Bear McCreary, composer

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 — John Paesano, composer

Star Wars Outlaws — Wilbert Roget, II, composer

Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord — Winifred Phillips, composer

Best New Age, Ambient, or Chant Album

Opus — Ryuichi Sakamoto

Best Instrumental Composition

"Communion" — Christopher Zuar, composer (Christopher Zuar Orchestra)

"Strands" — Pascal Le Boeuf, composer (Akropolis Reed Quintet, Pascal Le Boeuf & Christian Euman)CATEGORY 85

Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella

"Rhapsody In Blue(Grass)" — Béla Fleck & Ferde Grofé, arrangers (Béla Fleck Featuring Michael Cleveland, Sierra Hull, Justin Moses, Mark Schatz & Bryan Sutton)

Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella

"Rhapsody In Blue(Grass)" — Béla Fleck & Ferde Grofé, arrangers (Béla Fleck Featuring Michael Cleveland, Sierra Hull, Justin Moses, Mark Schatz & Bryan Sutton)

Best Orchestral Performance

"Adams: City Noir, Fearful Symmetries & Lola Montez Does The Spider Dance" — Marin Alsop, conductor (ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra)

"Kodály: Háry János Suite; Summer Evening & Symphony In C Major" — JoAnn Falletta, conductor (Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra)

"Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina" — Gustavo Dudamel, conductor (Los Angeles Philharmonic)

"Sibelius: Karelia Suite, Rakastava, & Lemminkäinen" — Susanna Mälkki, conductor (Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra)

"Stravinsky: The Firebird" — Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor (San Francisco Symphony)

Best Opera Recording

"Adams: Girls Of The Golden West" — John Adams, conductor; Paul Appleby, Julia Bullock, Hye Jung Lee, Daniela Mack, Elliot Madore, Ryan McKinny & Davóne Tines; Dmitriy Lipay, producer (Los Angeles Philharmonic; Los Angeles Master Chorale)

"Catán: Florencia En El Amazonas" — Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor; Mario Chang, Michael Chioldi, Greer Grimsley, Nancy Fabiola Herrera, Mattia Olivieri, Ailyn Pérez & Gabriella Reyes; David Frost, producer (The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus)

"Moravec: The Shining" — Gerard Schwarz, conductor; Tristan Hallett, Kelly Kaduce & Edward Parks; Blanton Alspaugh, producer (Kansas City Symphony; Lyric Opera Of Kansas City Chorus)

"Puts: The Hours" — Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor; Joyce DiDonato, Renée Fleming & Kelli O'Hara; David Frost, producer (Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; Metropolitan Opera Chorus)

"Saariaho: Adriana Mater" — Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor; Fleur Barron, Axelle Fanyo, Nicholas Phan & Christopher Purves; Jason O’Connell, producer (San Francisco Symphony; San Francisco Symphony Chorus; Timo Kurkikangas)

Best Choral Performance

"Clear Voices In The Dark" — Matthew Guard, conductor (Carrie Cheron, Nathan Hodgson, Helen Karloski & Clare McNamara; Skylark Vocal Ensemble)

"A Dream So Bright: Choral Music Of Jake Runestad" — Eric Holtan, conductor (Jeffrey Biegel; True Concord Orchestra; True Concord Voices)

"Handel: Israel in Egypt" — Jeannette Sorrell, conductor (Margaret Carpenter Haigh, Daniel Moody, Molly Netter, Jacob Perry & Edward Vogel; Apollo's Fire; Apollo's Singers)

"Ochre" — Donald Nally, conductor (The Crossing)

"Sheehan: Akathist" — Elaine Kelly, conductor; Melissa Attebury, Stephen Sands & Benedict Sheehan, chorus masters (Elizabeth Bates, Paul D'Arcy, Tynan Davis, Aine Hakamatsuka, Steven Hrycelak, Helen Karloski, Enrico Lagasca, Edmund Milly, Fotina Naumenko, Neil Netherly, Timothy Parsons, Stephen Sands, Miriam Sheehan & Pamela Terry; Novus NY; Artefact Ensemble, The Choir Of Trinity Wall Street, Downtown Voices & Trinity Youth Chorus)

Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance

"Adams, J.L.: Waves & Particles" — JACK Quartet

"Beethoven For Three: Symphony No. 4 and Op. 97, 'Archduke'" — Yo-Yo Ma, Leonidas Kavakos & Emanuel Ax

"Cerrone: Beaufort Scales" — Beth Willer, Christopher Cerrone & Lorelei Ensemble

"Home" — Miró Quartet

"Rectangles and Circumstance" — Caroline Shaw & Sō Percussion

Best Classical Instrumental Solo

Award to the instrumental soloist(s) and to the conductor when applicable.

"Akiho: Longing" — Andy Akiho

"Bach: Goldberg Variations" — Víkingur Ólafsson

"Eastman: The Holy Presence Of Joan D'Arc" — Seth Parker Woods; Christopher Rountree, conductor (Wild Up)

"Entourer" — Mak Grgić (Ensemble Dissonance)

"Perry: Concerto For Violin & Orchestra" — Curtis Stewart; James Blachly, conductor (Experiential Orchestra)

Best Classical Solo Vocal Album

Beyond The Years - Unpublished Songs Of Florence Price — Karen Slack, soloist; Michelle Cann, pianist

A Change Is Gonna Come — Nicholas Phan, soloist; Palaver Strings, ensembles

Newman: Bespoke Songs — Fotina Naumenko, soloist; Marika Bournaki, pianist (Nadège Foofat; Julietta Curenton, Colin Davin, Mark Edwards, Nadia Pessoa, Timothy Roberts, Ryan Romine, Akemi Takayama, Karlyn Viña & Garrick Zoeter)

Show Me The Way — Will Liverman, soloist; Jonathan King, pianist

Wagner: Wesendonck Lieder — Joyce DiDonato, soloist; Maxim Emelyanychev, conductor (Il Pomo d'Oro)

Best Classical Compendium

Akiho: BeLonging — Andy Akiho & Imani Winds; Andy Akiho, Sean Dixon & Mark Dover, producers

American Counterpoints — Curtis Stewart; James Blachly, conductor; Blanton Alspaugh, producer

Foss: Symphony No. 1; Renaissance Concerto; Three American Pieces; Ode — JoAnn Falletta, conductor; Bernd Gottinger, producer

Mythologies II — Sangeeta Kaur, Omar Najmi, Hilá Plitmann, Robert Thies & Danaë Xanthe Vlasse; Michael Shapiro, conductor; Jeff Atmajian, Emilio D. Miler, Hai Nguyen, Robert Thies, Danaë Xanthe Vlasse & Kitt Wakeley, producers

Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina — Gustavo Dudamel, conductor; Dmitriy Lipay, producer

Best Contemporary Classical Composition

Casarrubios: Seven For Solo Cello — Andrea Casarrubios, composer (Andrea Casarrubios)

Coleman: Revelry — Valerie Coleman, composer (Decoda)

Lang: Composition As Explanation — David Lang, composer (Eighth Blackbird)

Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina — Gabriela Ortiz, composer (Gustavo Dudamel, Los Angeles Philharmonic & Los Angeles Master Chorale)

Saariaho: Adriana Mater — Kaija Saariaho, composer (Esa-Pekka Salonen, Fleur Barron, Nicholas Phan, Christopher Purves, Axelle Fanyo, San Francisco Symphony Chorus & Orchestra)