BBC Music Magazine’s nominations for the best classical album in 2015 included two recordings conducted by Sakari Oramo. The 21 nominations for this year’s awards were chosen from a longlist of more than 200 recordings, all of which had received five star reviews from BBC Music Magazine’s critics.

Albums that are running for the ”Orchestral Award” include Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra’s CPE Bach: Hamburger Symphonies, conducted by the orchestra's artistic director Sakari Oramo. The recording, released by Finnish label Alba also won the EMMA prize in the classical album category. Another Oramo-conducted recording in BBC Music Magazine’s ”Orchestral Award” category is Nielsen’s Symphonies Nos 1 & 3 by Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra.

This is what BBC Music Magazine said about Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra’s CPE Bach: Hamburger Symphonies:

”It can sometimes take a Finnish musician to hear afresh, and to bring new insight into German repertoire. The Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra and Sakari Oramo have renewed the sheer surprise factor in these wonderful little 18th-century symphonies, unleashing the ‘bold and imaginative’ character which struck their early listeners so forcibly.”

In 2013 Oramo’s recording of Kaija Saariaho’s music with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (on Ondine Records) won BBC Music Magazine’s Jury Premiere Recording Award.

BBC Music Magazine Awards is a prestigious classical music prize, now given the 11th time by one of the world’s best-selling monthly classical music magazines which features leading names from the international classical music world. The award nominations indicate that Sakari Oramo is among the most respected conductors in the UK at the moment.

The award winners are selected by public vote ending 19.2. at www.awards.classical-music.com. The winners will be announced in London on 5th April.