Rock group Led Zeppelin, Russian conductor share Sweden`s Polar Music Prize
STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) - The surviving members of legendary rock band Led Zeppelin have been invited to the land of ice and snow to collect Sweden`s most prestigious music award and a cheque for one million kronor (almost $125,000 US).
The British band and Russian conductor Valery Gergiev on Monday were named winners of the 2006 Polar Music Prize. The award was founded in 1989 by Stig Anderson, manager of Swedish pop group ABBA, through a donation to The Royal Swedish Academy of Music.
Calling Led Zeppelin "one of the great pioneers of rock," the academy said the group`s "playful and experimental music combined with highly eclectic elements has two essential themes: Mysticism and primal energy."
Those features have come to define hard rock, the academy said.
Gergiev, a globe-trotting conductor, was cited "for the way his unique electrifying musical skills have deepened and renewed our relationship with the grand tradition; and for how he has managed to develop and amplify the importance of artistic music in these modern changing times."
Led Zeppelin and Gergiev will each receive one million kronor. The prize is typically split between pop artists and classical musicians.
Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, Robert Plant and John Bonham formed Led Zeppelin in 1968 and released their first album, named after the group, a year later. The band disbanded in 1980 when Bonham died, but its music remains hugely popular worldwide.
Gergiev is artistic and general director of St. Petersburg`s Mariinsky Theater, home of the Kirov opera and ballet companies, principal guest conductor of New York`s Metropolitan Opera and music director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic.
In May, the London Symphony Orchestra named him its next principal conductor, starting Jan. 1, 2007.
Previous winners of the Polar Music Prize include former Beatle Paul McCartney, violinist Isaac Stern, rock musician Bruce Springsteen, conductor Pierre Boulez and music producer Quincy Jones.
The Prize will be awarded May 22 by Sweden`s King Carl XVI Gustaf.
Gergiev has confirmed that he will attend the ceremony, and Page, Jones and Plant were also expected to come to Stockholm to collect the award, organizers said.
Canadian Press
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