Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
{{Short description|Award for visual media soundtrack}}
{{Infobox award
| name = Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
| awarded_for = Quality instrumental score soundtrack albums
| image =
| imagesize =
| alt = A gold gramophone trophy with a plaque set on a table
| caption =
| presenter = The Recording Academy
| country = United States
| year = 1959
| holder = Hans Zimmer, Dune: Part Two (2025)
| website = [https://www.grammy.com/ grammy.com]
}}
The Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media is an honor presented to a composer (or composers) for an original score created for a film, TV show or series, or other visual media{{cite web |url=https://www.listchallenges.com/grammy-award-for-best-score-soundtrack-for |title=Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media |website=www.listchallenges.com |access-date=April 27, 2017}} at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards.{{cite web |url=https://timelines.latimes.com/grammy-awards/ |title=Grammys history and winners through the years |author=Los Angeles Times Staff |website=www.musicianshalloffame.com |date=January 28, 2015 |access-date=April 28, 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.musicianshalloffame.com/history-of-the-grammy-awards/ |title=GRAMMY Awards History and Fun Facts |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=April 28, 2017}} Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by The Recording Academy of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position".{{cite web |url=https://www2.grammy.com/Recording_Academy/ |title=Overview |archive-date=October 27, 2009 |publisher=The Recording Academy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027163924/https://www.grammy.com/recording_academy/}}
It has been awarded since the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1959. The first recipient was American composer and pianist Duke Ellington, for the soundtrack to the 1959 film Anatomy of a Murder. Originally known as the Grammy Award for Best Sound Track Album – Background Score from a Motion Picture or Television, the award is currently (2025) known as the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media (Includes Film and Television.{{cite web |url=http://www.awardsandshows.com/features/best-score-soundtrack-292.html |title=Best Score Soundtrack |website=www.awardsandshows.com |access-date=August 8, 2017}} Until 2001, the award was presented to the composer of the music alone. From 2001 to 2007, the music producer(s) and sound engineer/mixer(s) shared the award. In 2007, the award reverted to a composer-only award. John Williams holds the record for most wins and nominations for the award, with eleven wins out of thirty-four nominations. Austin Wintory's nomination for Journey at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards was the only time that a video game was nominated in this category before the new category of Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media was created in 2022.[https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2022/06/10/grammys-award-video-games-score/ New Grammy awards include one for video game scores - The Washington Post]
Recipients
File:Duke Ellington - publicity.JPG was the first recipient of the award in 1959 for the Anatomy of a Murder soundtrack.]]
File:Henry Mancini.jpg won in 1962 for the Breakfast at Tiffany's soundtrack.]]
File:Lalo schifrin (cropped) (2).jpg won in 1968 for the TV series Mission: Impossible soundtrack.]]
File:Dave Grusin.jpg has won twice, in 1969 for The Graduate soundtrack, alongside Paul Simon, and in 1990 for The Fabulous Baker Boys soundtrack.]]
File:Paul Simon at the 9-30 Club (b).jpg won in 1969 for The Graduate soundtrack, alongside Dave Grusin.]]
File:Burt Bacharach 1972.JPG won for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in 1968]]
File:The Beatles arrive at JFK Airport.jpg won in 1971 for the Let It Be soundtrack.]]
File:Isaac Hayes 2.jpg won in 1972 for the Shaft soundtrack.]]
File:Neil Diamond HWOF Aug 2012 other (levels adjusted and cropped).jpg won in 1974 for the Jonathan Livingston Seagull soundtrack.]]
File:John Williams tux.jpg has won six times in a row, eleven times total, and has been nominated twenty-three more times.]]
File:Prince at Coachella (cropped).jpg and The Revolution won in 1985 for the Purple Rain soundtrack.]]
File:Ennio Morricone Cannes 2007 (cropped).jpg won in 1988 for The Untouchables.]]
File:James-horner-07.jpg won in 1991 for Glory.]]
File:Alan Menken 2013 (cropped).jpg has won twice, for Beauty and the Beast in 1993 and Aladdin in 1994.]]
File:Hans-Zimmer-profile (cropped).jpg has won twice, for Crimson Tide in 1996 and The Dark Knight in 2009, winning the latter with James Newton Howard.]]
File:Randy Newman HWOF Aug 2012 (levels adjusted).jpg has won twice, for A Bug's Life in 2000 and Toy Story 3 in 2011.]]
File:Thomas Newman.jpg has won twice, for American Beauty in 2001 and Skyfall in 2014.]]
File:Tan Dun.JPG won in 2002 for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Dun is currently the only Chinese composer to win the category.]]
File:Howard Shore, Canadian Film Centre, 2013-1.jpg has won the award (alongside John Kurlander and Peter Cobbin) for all three films of The Lord of the Rings film series in 2003, 2004, and 2005.]]
File:Alexandre Desplat 2015.jpg has won twice, for The King's Speech in 2012 and The Grand Budapest Hotel in 2015.]]
File:Reznor Ross G5 setup cropped tight.jpg (left) and Atticus Ross (right), of Nine Inch Nails, has won twice, for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in 2013 and Soul in 2022, winning the latter with Jon Batiste.]]
File:Sanchez3.png won in 2016 for Birdman.]]
File:Hildur Guðnadóttir (cropped).jpg became the first solo woman to win the award back-to-back (in 2020 for Chernobyl and 2021 for Joker).]]
File:Jon Batiste 2018 (cropped).jpg won for Soul in 2022.]]
File:Ludwig Göransson 2018 Interview (cropped).jpg won twice for Black Panther in 2019 and for Oppenheimer in 2024.]]
Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were presented, for works released in the previous year.
= 1950s =
| class="wikitable" style="width:80%"
! width="2%" | Year{{ref|1|[I]}} ! width="25%" | Performing artist(s) ! width="25%" | Work |
| scope="row", rowspan=6, style="text-align:center;"| 1959 [https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards/2nd-annual-grammy-awards-1959 2nd Annual GRAMMY Awards {{!}} Grammy.com] |
|---|
| style="background:#FAEB86"
| {{sort|Ellington, Duke|Duke Ellington}} |
| Stanley Wilson
| M Squad |
| Franz Waxman |
| Dick Cathcart |
| Henry Mancini |
=== 1960s===
=== 1970s ===
=== 1980s ===
= 1990s =
= 2000s =
= 2010s =
= 2020s =
Name changes
There have been several minor changes to the name of the award:{{cite web |url=https://www.grammy.com/recording-academy/announcement/explanation-for-category-restructuring |title=Explanation For Category Restructuring |date=5 April 2011 |publisher=The Recording Academy}}
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" |
| scope="col"| Year
! scope="col"| Name |
|---|
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1959
| Best Sound Track Album – Background Score from a Motion Picture or Television |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1961–62
| Best Sound Track Album or Recording of Music Score from Motion Picture or Television |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1964–68
| Best Original Score from a Motion Picture or Television Show |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1969–73 1978 | Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1974–77
| Best Album of Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1979–86
| Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1988–90
| Best Album of Original Instrumental Background Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1991–99
| Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or Television |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2000
| Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2001–11
| Best Score Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television, or Other Visual Media |
| scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2012–2022 | Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media |
| 2023–
|Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media (Includes Film and Television) |
Multiple wins and nominations
Up to and including the 67th Annual Grammy Awards (2025)
=Wins=
- John Williams – 11 (6 consecutive)
- Howard Shore – 3 (consecutive)
- Hans Zimmer – 3
- Ludwig Göransson – 2
- Alexandre Desplat – 2
- Michael Giacchino – 2
- Hildur Guðnadóttir – 2 (consecutive)
- Alan Menken – 2 (consecutive)
- Randy Newman – 2
- Thomas Newman – 2
- Trent Reznor – 2
- Atticus Ross – 2
=Nominations=
- John Williams – 36
- Hans Zimmer – 18
- Danny Elfman – 9
- Thomas Newman – 9
- Atticus Ross – 5
- Ludwig Göransson – 4
- Trent Reznor – 4
- Alan Silvestri – 3
See also
- BAFTA Award for Best Original Music
- Academy Award for Best Original Score
- Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Score
- Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
- Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media
- Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series
- Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary Series or Special
- Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Limited or Anthology Series, Movie or Special
Notes
{{Notelist|30em}}
References
{{refbegin}}
;General
- {{cite web |url=https://www.grammy.com/nominees/search |title=Past Winners Search |publisher=The Recording Academy |access-date=April 27, 2017}} Note: User must select the "Film/TV/Media" category as the genre under the search feature.
;Specific
{{refend}}
{{reflist|30em}}
External links
- [https://www.grammy.com/ Official site of the Grammy Awards]
{{Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media}}
{{Grammy Award categories}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grammy Award For Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media}}