2010 in British music

This is a summary of 2010 in music in the United Kingdom.

Events

• 1 January - Musicians honoured in the Queen's New Year Honours list include mezzo-soprano Sarah Connolly (CBE), conductor James Loughran (CBE), composer Craig Armstrong (OBE), rock musicians Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt (OBE), composer Rachel Portman (OBE) and guitarist Jet Harris (MBE).
• 9 January - Jamie Cullum marries model Sophie Dahl.^[1]
• 29 March – Protesters interrupt a concert by the Jerusalem Quartet at London's Wigmore Hall.^[2]
• 8 June - The Gregynog Music Festival opens; performers include Emma Kirkby, Catrin Finch and The Academy of Ancient Music.^[3]
• Karl Jenkins (CBE), jazz musician Bill Ashton (OBE), singer-songwriter Graham Nash (OBE), and rock musician John Cale.
• 23–28 June - The Glastonbury Festival 2010 is headlined by Stevie Wonder. Other acts performing include Muse, Gorillaz, Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood, Keane and Scissor Sisters.
• 15 July - Robbie Williams announces that he will rejoin Take That.
• 16 July - The Proms 2010 season opens with a performance of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 8.^[4]
• 25 July
  • A special daytime Prom concert at the Royal Albert Hall includes Murray Gold's original music from the television series Doctor Who, and his arrangement of Ron Grainer's Doctor Who theme.
  • A memorial concert in honour of the recently deceased Sir Charles Mackerras takes place at the Royal Albert Hall, with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Vassily Sinaisky.^[5]
• 26 July - Simon Holt's "a table of noises" (2007), a concerto for percussion receives its London première at The Proms, having originally been performed in Birmingham.^[6]
• 13 August - The Three Choirs Festival Youth Choir give their first concert, at Tewkesbury Abbey, performing Handel’s "Zadok the Priest", "Water Music (Suite No 2 in D)" and "My Heart is Inditing", and Bach’s "Magnificat", accompanied by the Corelli Chamber Orchestra.^[7]
• 17 August - Huw Watkins' Violin Concerto is premièred at The Proms by Alina Ibragimova, for whom it was written.^[8][9]
• 11 September - The Last Night of the Proms opens with the première of Jonathan Dove's "A Song of Joys".^[10] Jiří Bělohlávek conducts the concert for the first time, and Renée Fleming is the soloist for "Rule, Britannia".

UK charts

Groups reformed

• Suede (live only)^[11]
• The Yummy Fur (touring only)
• The Libertines (Reading and Leeds Festival)
• Emerson, Lake & Palmer (High Voltage Festival)
• Take That (original line-up)
• Pulp
• Cast

Groups disbanded

• See Musical groups disestablished in 2010

Classical music

New works

• Patrick Hawes - Highgrove Suite^[12]
• Kenneth Hesketh - Danceries (set II)
• Jon Lord - To Notice Such Things
• Mark-Anthony Turnage - Hammered Out
• Graham Waterhouse - Chinese Whispers

Opera

• David Blake - Scoring A Century

Albums

• Nicola Benedetti - Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto op35; Bruch: Violin Concerto 1
• Tasmin Little - Elgar: Violin Concerto / Polonia / Interlude from the Crown of India
• Bryn Terfel - Carols & Christmas Songs
• Roderick Williams - Butterworth: Shropshire Lad (Songs From A Shropshire Lad/ Folk Songs From Sussex)

Musical films

• Lemmy
• Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, starring Andy Serkis

British music awards

BRIT Awards

The 2010 BRIT Awards were hosted by Peter Kay on 16 February 2010.

• British Male Solo Artist: Dizzee Rascal
• British Female Solo Artist: Lily Allen
• British Breakthrough Act: JLS
• British Group: Kasabian
• MasterCard British Album: Lungs – Florence and the Machine
• British Single: "Beat Again" – JLS
• International Male Solo Artist: Jay-Z
• International Female Solo Artist: Lady Gaga
• International Breakthrough Act: Lady Gaga
• International Album: The Fame – Lady Gaga
• Critics' Choice: Ellie Goulding
• Brits Album of 30 Years: (What's the Story) Morning Glory? – Oasis
• Brits Performance of 30 Years: "Wannabe" & "Who Do You Think You Are" – The Spice Girls
• Outstanding Contribution to Music: Robbie Williams

Classical BRIT Awards

The Classical BRIT Awards were hosted by Myleene Klass on 13 May 2010.

• Male Artist of the Year — Vasily Petrenko
• Female Artist of the Year — Angela Gheorghiu
• Composer of the Year — Thomas Ades — The Tempest (opera)
• Young British Classical Performer or Group of the Year — Jack Liebeck
• Album of the Year — Only Men Aloud! — Band Of Brothers
• Soundtrack of the Year — Revolutionary Road — Thomas Newman
• Critics' Award — Orchestra e Coro dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, conducted by Antonio Pappano with Rolando Villazón, Anja Harteros, Sonja Ganassi and Rene Pape — Messa da Requiem
• Lifetime Achievement In Music — Kiri Te Kanawa

Ivor Novello Awards

The 55th Ivor Novello Awards were held on 20 May 2010 at Grosvenor House, London.^[13]

• Best Song Musically and Lyrically: "The Fear" – Lily Allen (written by Lily Allen and Greg Kurstin)
• Album Award: Sunny Side Up – Paolo Nutini
• Best Contemporary Song: "Daniel" – Bat for Lashes (written by Natasha Khan)
• PRS Most Performed Work: "The Fear" – Lily Allen
• International Achievement: Imogen Heap
• Ivors Inspiration Award: Johnny Marr
• Ivors Classical Music Award: Sir Peter Maxwell Davies
• PRS For Music Outstanding Contribution to British Music: Trevor Horn
• Lifetime Achievement: Paul Weller
• Academy Fellowship: Sir Tim Rice
• Special International Award: Neil Sedaka
• Songwriters of the Year: Lily Allen and Greg Kurstin
• Best Television Soundtrack: Desperate Romantics (composed by Daniel Pemberton)
• Best Original Film Score: Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (composed by John Powell)
• Best Original Video Game Score: Killzone 2 (composed by Joris de Man)

Mercury Prize

The 2010 Mercury Prize was awarded on 7 September 2010 to The xx for their album xx.^[14]

Popjustice £20 Music Prize

The 2010 Popjustice £20 Music Prize was awarded on 7 September 2010 to Example for his song "Kickstarts".

British Composer Awards

The 8th British Composer Awards were held on 30 November 2010 at Stationers' Hall, London. BBC Radio 3 presenters Sara Mohr-Pietsch and Andrew McGregor hosted the awards, which were presented by Jude Kelly.

• Chamber: Northwest Wind – Raymond Yiu
• Community or Educational Project: James Watt: Head of Steam – Karen MacIver
• Vocal: Augenlieder – Ryan Wigglesworth
• Contemporary Jazz Composition: The Causeway Suite – James Hamilton
• Instrumental Solo or Duo: Lieux Retrouvés – Thomas Adès
• Sonic Art: Installation for 300 Speakers, Pianola and Vacuum Cleaner – John Wynne
• Choral: Psalm No 140 "Deliver me, O Lord" – Sasha Siem
• International Award: Concerto for Cello and Orchestra – Unsuk Chin
• Stage Works: Kaspar Hauser – Rory Boyle
• Liturgical: Psalm No 1 "Blessed Is the Man" – Cheryl Frances-Hoad
• Wind Band or Brass Band: Cloud Atlas – Philip Grange
• Making Music Award: Fall – Kerry Andrew
• Orchestral: Doubles – Brian Elias

Record of the Year

The Record of the Year was awarded on 10 December 2010 to Owl City for their song "Fireflies".^[15]

Deaths

• 2 January - John Rhys Evans, operatic baritone, 79
• 11 January - Mick Green, English guitarist (Johnny Kidd & The Pirates), 65
• 28 January - Alistair Hulett, folk singer, 58 (liver failure)^[16]
• 6 February - Sir John Dankworth, jazz composer and musician, 82
• 9 February - Malcolm Vaughan, singer and actor, 80
• 13 February - John Reed, actor, singer, and dancer, 94
• 23 February - Wyn Morris, conductor, 81
• 5 March - Philip Langridge, operatic tenor, 70
• 1 April - Morag Beaton, opera singer, 83
• 8 April - Malcolm McLaren, impresario and former Sex Pistols manager, 64 (peritoneal mesothelioma)
• 9 April - Kenneth McKellar, tenor, 82
• 10 May – Jack Birkett, dancer, singer, mime artist and actor, 75
• 7 June - Stuart Cable, drummer, 40 (choked on vomit)^[17]
• 21 June
  • Chris Sievey, comedian and musician, 54 (cancer)
  • Tam White, musician and actor, 67 (heart attack)
• 23 June – Pete Quaife, English bass player (The Kinks), 66 (kidney failure)^[18]
• 29 June - Alf Carretta, lead singer of The Zimmers, 93
• 1 July - John Paynter, composer and music educator, 78
• 5 July - David Fanshawe, composer, 68 (stroke)
• 20 July - Anthony Rolfe Johnson, tenor, 69
• 17 August - Bill Millin, British Army soldier and piper during WWII (born 1922)
• 21 September - Geoffrey Burgon, film and TV score composer, 69
• 10 October - Alison Stephens, English mandolin player, 40 (cervical cancer)
• 30 October - Morris Pert, Scottish composer, drummer /percussionist and pianist, 62
• 25 November - Peter Christopherson, musician, 55
• 16 December - Richard Adeney, British flautist, 90

References