Canadian soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan, US jazz pianist and composer Herbie Hancock, and British rock band Queen have been announced as winners of this year’s Polar Music Prizes. The award for each laureate, given in a ceremony on 27th May in Stockholm, amounts to 1 million Swedish krona (approx. $93,897).
Founded by Swedish music producer Stig Andersen, best known for managing ABBA, the prize has traditionally been given to one classical and one contemporary artist each year. On several occasions more than two laureates have been announced, with three laureates in 2023 and 2019.
Alongside musicians, award winners have included organisations, producers and instrument inventors. The first prize included countries: in 1992, alongside Sir Paul McCartney, the three newly independent Baltic states were honoured for their contributions to music.
This year, Barbara Hannigan joins an illustrious group of classical musicians to win the prize, including Witold Lutosławski, Mstislav Rostropovich and Pierre Boulez. Hannigan’s collaborations with Boulez were cited in the announcement, as well as her close relationship with conductor Reinbert de Leeuw.
Hannigan commented: “I am deeply moved and humbled to receive this year’s Polar Music Prize. Thank you so much for including me in this incredible and inspiring group of laureates.”
Hannigan has been appointed chief conductor of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, a role she will adopt from 2026. She also holds guest positions at Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and l’Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, and is an associate artist with the London Symphony Orchestra. In December, we interviewed Hannigan ahead of concerts in London with the LSO this week.
Alongside her burgeoning conducting career, Hannigan is known for originating several important roles in contemporary opera. Premieres she sung in include two by Sir George Benjamin (Written on Skin and Lessons in Love and Violence), three by Gerald Barry (La plus forte, The Importance of Being Earnest and Alice’s Adventures Underground), as well as Hans Abrahamsen’s Snow Queen and orchestral songs Let me tell you. Hannigan has also been acclaimed for her performance in Berg’s Lulu, among many other operatic roles.
Jazz pianist and composer Herbie Hancock joins a smaller but similarly illustrious group of jazz artists honoured with Polar Music Prizes, including Dizzy Gillespie and Sonny Rollins. Hancock’s contemporaries Wayne Shorter and Keith Jarrett have also been awarded prizes, all of whom performed with Miles Davis.
Herbie Hancock first made his name in the 1960s performing alongside Wayne Shorter in Davis’ so-called Second Great Quintet, along with bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams. Later, Hancock developed a burgeoning solo career as a bandleader and composer, encompassing post-bop to fusion, electro-funk and hip hop. He also scored film soundtracks, including Antonioni’s Blowup in 1966.
The Polar Music Prize 2025 was also awarded to the surviving members of rock band Queen. Arriving on the scene in the 1970s, they grew to great popularity through the 1980s, selling more than 300 million records and contributing significantly to the development of glam rock and heavy metal. After his last live performance with the group in 1986, charismatic lead singer and songwriter Freddie Mercury was diagnosed with AIDS, dying in 1991.
