Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra’s recording of Florence Price’s First and Third Symphonies was awarded the GRAMMY for “Best Orchestral Performance," announced April 3, 2022. The recording, on the acclaimed Deutsche Grammophon label with producer Dima Lipay, celebrates the work of Price, the first Black woman composer to have a symphonic work premiered by a major American orchestra.
It marks the first GRAMMY win for The Philadelphia Orchestra (although it has appeared on GRAMMY-winning recordings over the years). Price’s works were largely forgotten after her death in 1953 until the discovery in 2009 of her unpublished compositions led to an enthusiastic embrace of her music. Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra have been performing Price’s compositions and will release another album of her works in partnership with Deutsche Grammophon next year.
“On behalf of everyone at The Philadelphia Orchestra, we are so grateful to the Recording Academy for this tremendous honor,” said Nézet-Séguin. “This moment is made even more special since it celebrates the incredible music of Florence Price, who once said that she had two handicaps: that of sex and race. Though we can’t erase the prejudices of the past, we can work together to build a more equitable future for classical music—one in which all voices are heard, where everyone sees themselves on our stages, and where artists like Florence do not fade into obscurity. It is our hope that Florence Price becomes a staple in the classical music canon and that recordings of her works will be GRAMMY contenders—and winners—for many years to come.”