Professor Liza Lim AM, one of Australia’s most celebrated composers, has been awarded the 2026 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition for her visionary cello concerto A Sutured World.
The Grawemeyer Award, granted annually by the University of Louisville, is the world’s most prestigious contemporary classical composition prize, worth US $100,000.
Professor Lim is only the second Australian and the sixth woman to receive the honour in music since the award began in 1985. Previous winners include Harrison Birtwistle, John
Adams, Krzysztof Penderecki, Unsuk Chin, Kaija Saariaho and Brett Dean. “I hope this recognition helps to shine a light on the vital role that music can play in shaping our understanding of the world and in responding to the urgent challenges we face,” Professor Lim said.
“I've been aware of the Grawemeyer Award in music my whole career - I distinctly remember Cambodian composer Chinary Ung winning it in 1989 and US composer Joan Tower in 1990 and being encouraged by their example in terms of representation.”
Established in 1984, the Grawemeyer Awards honour creative ideas in music composition, world order, education, religion and psychology. The awards recognises creative ideas that have the power to improve our culture.
A global collaboration
Commissioned by leading international ensembles including the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Casa da Música Porto, A Sutured World was written for renowned cellist Nicolas Altstaedt. The work premiered in Munich in October 2024 as part of the Musica Viva concert series.
“I love playing this piece more and more,” Altstaedt said recently at the seventh performance in Porto. “I believe this will be one of the great cello concertos in the future for our repertoire.”
The concerto explores themes of unity and healing, drawing inspiration from the Japanese art of kintsugi, where broken pottery is repaired with gold lacquer to highlight, rather than hide, its fractures. “The cellist weaves together contrasting worlds – the lyrical, the raw, the playful and the absurd – each a facet of a spiritual journey,” Professor Lim said.
Matthew Ertz, Director of the Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, described Professor Lim’s achievement as “astounding and deeply moving.” “Her ability to convey these ideas through intricate and virtuosic writing for the cello is remarkable,” he said.
I hope this recognition helps to shine a light on the vital role that music can play in shaping our understanding of the world and in responding to the urgent challenges we face.
Professor Liza Lim AM
A composer, educator and researcher
Professor Lim holds the Sculthorpe Chair of Australian Music at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, University of Sydney. She is widely recognised for her innovative approach to composition, which often involves collaborative and transcultural practices.
Her music has been performed by leading orchestras and ensembles around the world, and she has held residencies and commissions with major festivals and institutions.
Beyond her work as a composer, Professor Lim is an educator and researcher whose projects explore the intersection of music, culture and ecology. In 2025, she became the first musician to receive an Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship. Her five-year program, Multispecies Creativity and Climate Communication, aims to foster engagement with urgent climate and social issues through music.
Through this research, Professor Lim champions the transformative role of the arts in cultivating resilience and vitality – qualities she sees as essential for human flourishing in the face of ecological crises. “Music can shape our understanding of the world and help us respond to the urgent challenges we face,” she said. “The arts invite us to notice. To listen. To imagine futures beyond extraction and destruction.
Professor Liza Lim at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Photo: Fiona Wolf/University of Sydney
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LinkA career of influence
Professor Lim’s work has consistently pushed boundaries, blending cultural traditions and exploring philosophical ideas through sound. Her compositions often reflect a deep engagement with themes of identity, ecology and spirituality.
This award adds to a long list of honours, including the 2026 Roche Commission and 2024 Opus Klassik Composer of the Year. She will accept the award at a ceremony in Louisville on 14 April 2026.
Composers at Sydney Conservatorium of Music
Sydney Conservatorium of Music is home to some of Australia’s most respected and diverse composers. Leading the way are Professor Matthew Hindson AM and Professor Liza Lim AM, alongside Associate Professors James Humberstone, Damien Ricketson, Daniel Rojas and Paul Stanhope.
The team also includes Dr Benjamin Carey, Mr Carl Vine AO, Dr Natalie Williams, Dr Ivan Zavada, Dr Daniel Blinkhorn, Dr Natalie Nicolas, Dr Amanda Cole, Mr Damien Barbeler, Dr Andrew Calaghan, Dr Fiona Hill, Dr Alison Cole and Ms Alexis Weaver.
Emerging voices like Ms Ella Macens, Dr Cyrus Meurant, Dr Peggy Polias and Honorary Associate Dr David Kim-Boyle add depth and innovation.
The Con also honours Emerita Professor Anne Boyd and Honorary Adjunct Professor Ross Edwards AM, whose influence continues to shape Australian music. Together, this group represents a rich mix of experience, creativity and cultural perspectives that define the Conservatorium’s reputation as a powerhouse of composition.
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