(Credit: BBC Proms)

Thomas Adès has received the Royal Philharmonic Society Gold Medal.

The composer received the honor after the U.K. premiere of Adès’ new orchestral work “Aquifer” conducted by Sir Simon Rattle with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks at the BBC Proms Festival.

During the presentation Rattle said, said, “The words outrageously gifted might have been invented for Tom, because not only is he a wonderful composer, but a staggering pianist and a magnificent and generous conductor. We wait for each new piece, we never know what it’s going to be, but it always seems to be effortlessly connected to the past, and it always is at the same time new and totally Tom. I suspect that’s the definition of a great composer.”

RPS Chief Executive James Murphy added, “He has the gift of an alchemist, making old forms gleam anew… His music fires the minds of a new generation of composers whom he devotedly programmes and champions. Equally radiant are his achievements as a pianist and conductor, and the treasured associations [he has] built with orchestras such as the Boston Symphony, The Hallé and Vienna Philharmonic, as well as The Met, Aldeburgh Festival, and Paris Opera. Long may he keep enchanting us.”

Adès is a well-known composer who is known for his operas “The Tempest,” “The Exterminating Angel” and “Powder Her Face.” 

The RPS Gold Medal has previously been awarded to the likes of Brahms, Elgar, Henry Wood, Sibelius, Stravinsky, Britten, Bernstein, Messiaen, Boulez, Ligeti, Kathleen Ferrier, and John Williams, among other many others.