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NEC Alumni Win Grammy Awards Across Genres and Categories

February 2, 2026

NEC Alumni Win Grammy Awards Across Genres and Categories

Grammy Award winners I'm With Her, from left: Aoife O’Donovan, Sarah Jarosz, and Sara Watkins

NEC alumni won Grammy Awards across genres and categories during a ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday, February 1. Please join us in applauding these artists and acknowledging the work that went into the winning recordings, which individually and collectively speak volumes to the impact music makes on the world.

Sarah Jarosz ’13 and Aoife O’Donovan ’03, who, with Sara Watkins comprise the trio I’m with Her, won in the Best Folk Album category for Wild And Clear And Blue, and in the Best American Roots Song category for the track “Ancient Light.”

Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra won in the Best Orchestral Performance category for a recording of Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie. Members of the BSO at the time of the recording include violinists Jenny Ahn ’11 MMGlen Cherry ’95John Holland ’00, ’02 MMJason Horowitz ’93, ’96 ADZenas Hsu ’13 MM, ’15 GDJulianne Lee ’08 MMHaldan Martinson ’97 MMKina Park ’09 MMCaroline Pliszka ’02 MM, and Sophie Wang ’18 MM, ’20 GM; violists Nathaniel Farny ’02 GDMary Ferrillo ’13 MMStephanie Fong ’04 MMDaniel Getz ’11 BM, and Steven O. Laraia ’13, ’15 MM; cellists Blaise Déjardin ’07 MM, ’08 GDJonah Ellsworth (Prep) ’17, ’19 GD, ’20 MM, and Mickey Katz ’03; double-bassists Benjamin Levy ’02 and Dennis Roy ’89; horn player Michael Winter ’07; percussionist Matthew McKay ’09; and assistant conductor Earl Lee ’16 GC. The BSO also won in the Best Classical Instrumental Solo category for a recording of Shostakovich’s cello concertos with Yo-Yo Ma.

Numerous BSO musicians are members of NEC’s distinguished faculty, including violinists Jason HorowitzAlexander Velinzon, and Valeria Vilker-Kuchment; violist Rebecca Gitter; cellists Blaise Déjardin and Mickey Katz; double-bassists Caleb QuillenThomas Van Dyck; flutist Cynthia Meyers; oboists John FerrilloMark McEwen, and Keisuke Wakao; clarinetists Christopher ElchicoWilliam R. HudginsThomas Martin, and Andrew Sandwick; bassoonists Suzanne Nelsen and Richard Svoboda; horn players Rachel ChildersRichard Sebring, Jason Snider, and Michael Winter; trumpet players Thomas Siders and Benjamin Wright; trombonists Stephen LangeJames Markey, and Toby Oft; tubist Mike Roylance; percussionists Daniel BauchMatthew McKay, and Will Hudgins; and harpist Jessica Zhou.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic’s recording of works by Gabriela Ortiz, Yenga, won in the Best Classical Compendium category. The album features the Los Angeles Master Chorale, of which Steve Pence ’04 MM is a member. Members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic include violinists Chao-Hua Jin ’95Rebecca Reale (Prep)Melody Ye Yuan ’19, and Weilu Zhang ’18; assistant principal cellist Dahae Kim ’11, ’13 MM; assistant principal trumpeter Christopher Still ’95MM; and percussionist Matthew Howard ’15 MM. The Los Angeles Philharmonic also won in the Best Contemporary Classical Composition category for Ortiz’s Dzonot, which appears on Yenga.

Soprano Amanda Forsythe ’01 MM won in the Best Classical Solo Vocal Album category for her performance on Telemann: Ino — Opera Arias For Soprano, featuring the Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, whose members include violinists Cynthia Roberts ’05 and Beth Wenstrom ’05 MM.

Kwamé Ryan and the Houston Grand Opera won in the Best Opera Recording category for a performance of Jake Heggie’s Intelligence. Members of the Houston Grand Opera orchestra include flutist Tyler Martin ’19 MM and clarinetist Eric Chi ’08

Read about and listen to recordings by the NEC alumni who were nominated in November for Grammy Awards.

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