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Artist News Awards Management & Funding
Magz Hall and Vivienne Griffin win top Oram Awards prizes
By Andy Malt | Published on Tuesday 2 November 2021
The winners of this year’s Oram Awards have been announced, with Magz Hall and Vivienne Griffin taking the top two prizes, while Lia Mice, Lou Barnell, Maria Sappho and Venus Ex Machina are also recognised.
Now in its fifth year, and named after legendary producer Daphne Oram, the awards celebrate innovation in music, sound and related technologies by women, girls and gender minorities. Six winners receive talent development bursaries from the PRS Foundation – four receiving £500 each, while two receive special commendations and £1500 each.
“This is fantastic recognition for the radio art and sound art I have been making since 2000”, says Magz Hall, a Dr of Radio Art and Senior Radio Lecturer at Canterbury Christ Church University. “It means that I can start research and development on an exciting new longer term project called ‘Radio Playtime’. [That] will be realised as a bespoke sonic sculptural playground inspiring children and visitors alike to think about how radio electronics make concrete music”.
Vivienne Griffin, who works across numerous disciplines, adds: “Daphne Oram is a legend, she was a vanguard, it is an honour to win an award in her name. I’ve worked in the intersection of sound and fine art for some time. Anyone who works in that area knows that it’s an atypical space which often has nowhere to land. The Oram Awards is the perfect space for this kind of practice, as Oram defied expectations around what music could be and defined electroacoustic music, spiritually and physically”.
One of this year’s judges, New BBC Radiophonic Workshop member Lauren Sarah Hayes, comments: “While we have a long way to go before the arts in the UK are rid of their various exclusions, and supported in such a way that we eventually won’t have a need for programmes like the Oram Awards, I’m nevertheless delighted to see much work in the final selection this year that is thinking about building networks and community, and expanding the idea of what musical and sonic artistry can be”.
“I think I can speak on behalf of all the judges”, she adds, “in saying how difficult it was to reach a final consensus, which only speaks to the plurality, quality, and diversity of music that is being made right now. That’s what’s really thrilling”.
This year’s Oram Awards ceremony will be in partnership with experimental music festival Supersonic, with performances from all six winners and a Q&A panel discussion streamed on the festival’s YouTube channel.
