Pink Floyd legend David Gilmour was honoured with the prestigious O2 Silver Clef Award on Wednesday night in London for his outstanding contribution to music. The 79-year-old guitarist accepted the accolade from Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood at the 49th annual awards ceremony, which supports the Nordoff and Robbins music therapy charity.
During his speech, Gilmour praised the charity’s life-changing work, saying, “My relationship with them goes back 50 years – thank you to them for this award and for the miraculous work they do.”
The star-studded event at JW Marriott Grosvenor House hotel, hosted by Edith Bowman, raised over £715,000 for Nordoff and Robbins, the UK’s largest music therapy charity. Other winners included Sophie Ellis-Bextor (Best Female), Mika (Global Impact Award), and The Last Dinner Party (Best New Music), with awards also going to Rick Astley, The Corrs, IDLES, Soul II Soul, Noah Kahan, AURORA, Tony Christie, and Chase and Status.
Sandra Schembri, CEO of Nordoff and Robbins, highlighted the profound impact of music therapy, noting how it enables children to speak for the first time and helps dementia patients reconnect with their families. She also revealed plans for a major celebration next year to mark the event’s 50th anniversary.
“Music therapy is music in the hands of an expert. When words fail, music speaks,” Sandra said, emphasising the transformative power of music celebrated at the event.
