Pioneering artist, musician, composer, film director and Grammy Award-winner Laurie Anderson (United States) will chair the international jury panel for the thirteenth Glenn Gould Prize.  

The jury includes renowned pianist and music educator Dr. Surojeet Chatterji(India); writer, photographer, art historian and winner of the PEN/Hemingway Award Teju Cole (Nigeria/United States); best-selling author of novels, graphic novels, comics, theatre, TV and films and winner of the Hugo and Nebula awards Neil Gaiman (United Kingdom); Grammy Award-winning musician, composer and producer Chilly Gonzales (Canada); composer, conductor and producer Harry Gregson-Williams (United Kingdom); pianist, musicologist and educator Dr. Adam Greig (Scotland/India); Grammy Award-winning violinist Hilary Hahn (United States); Grammy Award-winning Jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant (United States); Emmy Award-winning actor Tatiana Maslany (Canada); Academy Award-winning composer, singer-songwriter, music producer and philanthropist A.R. Rahman (India); composer, producer and core member of Arcade Fire Richard Reed Parry (Canada); and designer and recipient of the Legion of Honour Philippe Starck (France).

The Glenn Gould Prize – which has been referred to by composer Philip Glass and others as “The Nobel Prize of the Arts” – is awarded to a living individual for a unique lifetime contribution that has enriched the human condition through the arts.  A tribute to Glenn Gould’s artistry and his multifaceted contributions to culture, the prize promotes the vital connection between artistic excellence and the transformation of lives.  The life’s work of a Glenn Gould laureate embodies this connection. 

Nominees for the international prize hail from a broad spectrum of creative disciplines including music, theatre, writing, film, video, radio, television, recording, technology, architecture and design.

Due to COVID-19, the jury will convene virtually on October 14 to deliberate and select the laureate. The winner of the thirteenth Glenn Gould Prize will be announced at a livestream news conference on Thursday, October 15, 2020at Noon EDT.  Details for accessing the livestream will be provided at www.glenngould.ca.

The winner of the Glenn Gould Prize receives a cash award of $100,000 (CAD) and the Glenn Gould Prize statue by Canadian artist Ruth Abernethy.  The laureate’s work is honoured through a series of public events presented the following year.

The winner will choose an outstanding young artist or ensemble who embodies creative promise, innovation and career potential to receive the $15,000 (CAD) Glenn Gould Protégé Prize.  The recipient of the Protégé Prize will be announced later this year.

About The Glenn Gould Foundation

The Glenn Gould Foundation honours the spirit and legacy of Canadian pianist, writer, and broadcaster Glenn Gould. We celebrate artistic heroes, honour brilliance and promote creativity, and help transform lives through the power of the arts.  Every two years, the Foundation awards the Glenn Gould Prize.  Past laureates of the international prize include Jessye Norman (2018), Philip Glass (2015), Robert Lepage (2013), Leonard Cohen (2011), El Sistema founder Dr. José Antonio Abreu (2008) and Pierre Boulez (2002).  For more information visit www.glenngould.ca.

Photo: Glenn Gould. © 1961 Don Hunstein.