For Your GRAMMY® Consideration
We are so proud of the brilliant recordings from the 8VA roster this year. Please consider the following when casting your GRAMMY® ballots. First round voting runs from October 12, 2026 through October 22, 2026.
Best Orchestral Performance
Clyne: Color Field
Marin Alsop, conductor (Baltimore Symphony Orchestra)
from Anna Clyne AbstractionsXiaogang Ye: The Backyard of the Village
Dane Lam, conductor (Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra)
from The Backyard of the Village: Orchestral Works by Xiaogang YeIves: Celilo Falls
David Danzmayr, conductor (Oregon Symphony)
from AWAKEN: All Classical Radio's RII, Vol. 3American Promise
William Ross, conductor (London Symphony Orchestra)
from Karen LeFrak: American PromiseBest Opera Recording
Davis: The Central Park Five
Anthony Parnther, conductor (Long Beach Opera)
Lacey Jo Benter, Cedric Berry, Ashley Faatoalia, Orson Van Gay II, Bernard Holcomb, William Powell III, Justin Ryan; Anthony Davis, composer; Richard Wesley, librettistBest Choral Performance
Roots & Rivers
Joshua Habermann, conductor (Santa Fe Desert Chorale)
Chelsea Helm, Edmund Milly, Savannah Porter, Marques Jerrell RuffBest Chamber Music / Small Ensemble Performance
Canto Ostinato
Andrew Cyr, Erik Hall, Metropolis Ensemble & Sandbox PercussionDvořák: String Quintets
James Ehnes, Tessa Lark, Jonathan Vinocour, Ani Aznavoorian, Timothy Cobb, Edward Arron, Che-Yen Chen, Amy Schwartz Moretti, Paul Neubauer (Seattle Chamber Music Society)Best Classical Instrumental Solo
Metanoia
Yulianna AvdeevaFound Objects / Sound Objects
Marc-André HamelinWhitacre: The Pacific Has No Memory
Anne Akiko Meyers
Orpheus Chamber OrchestraManu Sinistra: Concertos for the Left Hand
Illia Ovcharenko
2022 Honens International Piano Competition Laureate
Oksana Lyniv, conductor (MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony)Whispers & Thunder
Illia Ovcharenko
2022 Honens International Piano Competition LaureateLeFrak: Prairie Dawn
Chris Richards
William Ross, conductor (London Symphony Orchestra)Cuong: Re(new)al
Sandbox Percussion
David Alan Miller, conductor (Albany Symphony)Foote: The Complete Cello Works
Julian Schwarz
Gerard Schwarz, conductor (Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra)Love Symposium
Esther Yoo
Long Yu, conductor (Royal Philharmonic Orchestra)Best Classical Compendium
Renewal: Music of Viet Cuong
David Alan Miller, conductor; Sandbox Percussion; Justin Benavidez; Albany SymphonyBest Contemporary Classical Composition
Davis: The Central Park Five
Anthony Davis, composer; Richard Wesley, librettist
from The Central Park Five
Anthony Parnther, Lacey Jo Benter, Bernard Holcomb, Orson Van Gay II, Ashley Faatoalia, Cedric Berry, William Powell III, Justin RyanClyne: Color Field
Anna Clyne
from Anna Clyne: Abstractions
Marin Alsop & Baltimore Symphony OrchestraHamelin: Hexensabbat
Marc-André Hamelin
from Found Objects / Sound ObjectsWhitacre: The Pacific Has No Memory
Eric Whitacre
from The Pacific Has No Memory
Anne Akiko Meyers & Orpheus Chamber OrchestraIves: Celilo Falls
Nancy Ives
from AWAKEN: All Classical Radio's RII, Vol. 3
David Danzmayr, Brent Florendo Sitwalla-Pum & Oregon SymphonyBest Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
Prairie Dawn
arr. for clarinet & orchestra by William Ross
Karen LeFrak, London Symphony Orchestra & William RossCanto Ostinato
arr. Jonny Allen (Sandbox Percussion), Erik Hall, David Leon & Ben Wallace
Metropolis Ensemble, Erik Hall & Sandbox PercussionBest Engineered Album, Classical
Davis: The Central Park Five
Greg Curtis, engineer; Stephen Marsh, mastering engineerCanto Ostinato
Erik Hall & Mike Tierney, engineers; Warren Defever, mastering engineerRenewal: Music of Viet Cuong
Silas Brown, engineer and mastering engineerDvořák: String Quintets
Simon Kiln, engineer and mastering engineerBest Immersive Audio Album
American Promise
William Ross, Karen LeFrak & London Symphony Orchestra
Click here for the official First Round GRAMMY® voting guide from the Recording Academy.