June 16, 2016 - Laureates of 2016 honoured at the Stockholm Concert Hall
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All photos: © Annika Berglund/Polar Music Prize

Max Martin and Cecilia Bartoli honoured with 25th Polar Music Prize, presented by King Carl XVI Gustaf

Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Pink, Adam Levine, KISS, Simon Cowell and Backstreet Boys send congratulatory messages.

Max Martin receives the 2016 Polar Music Prize from H.M King Carl XVI Gustaf
Cecilia Bartoli receives the 2016 Polar Music Prize from H.M King Carl XVI Gustaf

Max Martin, the Grammy Award winning hit-making maestro, and Cecilia Bartoli, internationally renowned mezzo-soprano, have been honoured today with the 25th Polar Music Prize, the world’s most prestigious award for music. The 2016 Laureates were enthusiastically applauded as they received their Prizes from King Carl XVI Gustaf. Citations were read by Brian Littrell, Kevin Richardson and Howard Dorough of Backstreet Boys and Sweden’s culture minister Alice Bah Kuhnke. The gala ceremony took place in Stockholm’s Concert Hall.  

Cecilia Bartoli said, on receiving her Award: 
"I am so excited! Thank you very much for this wonderful prize. I am deeply honoured and I am very proud. Thank you to the Polar Music Prize for supporting and promoting the universal values of music. For me, music is emotion, passion and humanity. I strongly believe in the power of music and I am here to share my belief with all of you!”

In his acceptance speech, Max Martin, who is famous for keeping a low public profile, joked: “You blew my cover! I’ve managed to hide between two speakers in a basement for over 20 years, but you got me!”  He said that he has two secrets for writing the perfect pop song, firstly, and this was typically self-deprecating and modest: “To steal. Yes. I confess. I have through the years ripped off giants like Abba, Kiss, Prince … and of course Lasse Holm." And the second, and most important is love from his wife Jenny and daughter Doris: “I could NOT have done it without you.” He concluded with: "to the Polar Music Prize, I can’t thank you enough for this honour.”

Lena Willemark
Seinabo Sey
Artists performing in tribute to Max Martin and Cecilia Bartoli, included Peter Jöback, Seinabo Sey, Amanda Bergman, Ann Hallenberg, Lena Willemark and folk music group Väsen. The Royal Stockholm Philarmonic Orchestra was led by maestro Hans Ek.  

Ann-Sofie von Otter, the celebrated mezzo-soprano, congratulated Cecilia Bartoli, and said: “I’m really thrilled that you are getting this award because I so admire you for your unique artistry and your passion for the music, the music making, for the repertoire and the recordings.”

Simon Cowell’s filmed message to Max Martin caused much amusement when he admitted telling Max Martin that: ”no-one is going to have a hit with a name like that” – he was referring to Britney Spears and ”Oops I did It Again”. He also reflected that ”I don’t think that Max Martin is human, I think he was made in Sweden to make hit records, because nobody human can have done what he’s done. In the history of pop music he is the best writer alive today.”

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Sweden’s national football captain, joked:
“Max Martin, you’ve come up to my level and are winning some nice prizes!”  Britney Spears said: “I think you’re a genius, it’s such an honour to work with you … you’ve been a part of my career from the beginning.” Justin Timberlake also congratulated Max, saying: “No one deserves it more. You are a master.” Katy Perry talked about the “wonderful back and forth” of the working process with Max, and how he “sets the scene for it to be really creative”, and Pink said: “you blow my mind and I’m really proud of you.”  
Zlatan Ibrahimovic greets Max Martin for receiving the Polar Music Prize 2016.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic congratulates Max Martin for receiving the Polar Music Prize (link to video)

You can find pictures from the ceremony here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/polarmusicprize/

The Polar Music Prize is an international recognition of excellence in the world of music. The first Laureates in 1992 were Paul McCartney and the Baltic States and the most recent, was percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie and singer Emmylou Harris. The roll call of former Laureates reads like a who’s who of modern and classical music: Dizzy Gillespie, Patti Smith, Bob Dylan, Ravi Shankar, Renee Fleming, Ray Charles, Youssou N’dour, Björk, Mstislav Rostropovich and Kronos Quartet.

Copyright © 2016 Polar Music Prize, All rights reserved.


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