The Grammy Award forBest Instrumental Soloist Performance (without orchestra) was awarded from 1959 to 2011. From 1967 to 1971, and in 1987, the award was combined with the award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) and awarded as the Grammy Award for Best Classical Performance – Instrumental Soloist or Soloists (with or without orchestra).
The award has had several minor name changes:
In 2012, the award was discontinued in a major overhaul of Grammy categories. The category was merged with the Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) category to form the new Best Classical Instrumental Solo category, similar to the award from 1967 to 1971.
Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were presented, for works released in the previous year.
| Year | Winner(s) | Title | Nominees | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Andrés Segovia | Segovia Golden Jubilee |
| [1] |
| 1960 | Arthur Rubinstein | Beethoven: Sonatas No. 21 in C Major, Op. 53 & No. 18 in E Flat Major, Op. 53, No. 3 |
| [2] |
| 1961 | Laurindo Almeida | The Spanish Guitars of Laurindo Almeida |
| [3] |
| 1962 | Laurindo Almeida | Reverie for Spanish Guitar |
| [4] |
| 1963 | Vladimir Horowitz | Columbia Records Presents Vladimir Horowitz |
| [5] |
| 1964 | Vladimir Horowitz | The Sound of Horowitz |
| [6] |
| 1965 | Vladimir Horowitz | Horowitz Plays Beethoven, Debussy, Chopin |
| [7] |
| 1966 | Vladimir Horowitz | Horowitz at Carnegie Hall - An Historic Return |
| [8] |
| 1972 | Vladimir Horowitz | Horowitz Plays Rachmaninoff (Etudes-Tableaux Piano Music; Sonatas) |
| [9] |
| 1973 | Vladimir Horowitz | Horowitz Plays Chopin |
| [10] |
| 1974 | Vladimir Horowitz | Horowitz Plays Scriabin |
| [11] |
| 1975 | Alicia de Larrocha | Albéniz: Iberia |
| [12] |
| 1976 | Nathan Milstein | Bach: Sonatas and Partitas for Violin Unaccompanied |
| [13] |
| 1977 | Vladimir Horowitz | The Horowitz Concerts 1975/76 |
| [14] |
| 1978 | Arthur Rubinstein | Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 18 in E Flat/Schumann: Fantasiestücke, Op. 12 |
| [15] |
| 1979 | Vladimir Horowitz | The Horowitz Concerts 77/78 |
| [16] |
| 1980 | Vladimir Horowitz | The Horowitz Concerts 78/79 |
| [17] |
| 1981 | Itzhak Perlman | The Spanish Album |
| [18] |
| 1982 | Vladimir Horowitz | The Horowitz Concerts 79/80 |
| [19] |
| 1983 | Glenn Gould | Bach: The Goldberg Variations |
| [20] |
| 1984 | Glenn Gould | Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos. 12 & 13 |
| [21] |
| 1985 | Yo-Yo Ma | Bach: The Unaccompanied Cello Suites |
| [22] |
| 1986 | Vladimir Ashkenazy | Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit; Pavane pour une infante défunte; Valses nobles et sentimentales |
| [23] |
| 1987 | No Award Given | |||
| 1988 | Vladimir Horowitz | Horowitz in Moscow |
| [24] |
| 1989 | Alicia de Larrocha | Albéniz: Iberia; Navarra; Suite Espagnola |
| [25] |
| 1990 | András Schiff | Bach: The English Suites |
| [26] |
| 1991 | Vladimir Horowitz | The Last Recording |
| [27] |
| 1992 | Alicia de Larrocha | Granados: Goyescas, Allegro de Concierto, Danze Lenta |
| [28] |
| 1993 | Vladimir Horowitz | Horowitz - Discovered Treasures (Chopin, Liszt, Scarlatti, Scriabin, Clementi) |
| [29] |
| 1994 | John Browning | Barber: The Complete Solo Piano Music |
| [30] |
| 1995 | Emanuel Ax | Haydn: Piano Sonatas, Nos. 32, 47, 53, 59 |
| [31] |
| 1996 | Radu Lupu | Schubert: Piano Sonatas (in B Flat major and A major) |
| [32] |
| 1997 | Earl Wild | The Romantic Master - Works of Saint-Saëns, Handel |
| [33] |
| 1998 | János Starker | Bach: Suites for Cello Nos. 1-6 |
| [34] |
| 1999 | Murray Perahia | Bach: English Suites No. 1, 3, & 6 |
| [35] |
| 2000 | Murray Perahia | Bach: The English Suites Nos. 2, 4, & 5 |
| [36] |
| 2001 | Tobias Lehmann, producer; Jens Schünemann, engineer; Sharon Isbin, soloist | Dreams of a World (Works of Lauro, Ruiz-Pipò, Duarte, etc.) |
| [37] |
| 2002 | Arne Akselberg, Truls Mørk producers; Arne Akselberg, engineer; Truls Mørk, soloist | Britten Cello Suites |
| [38] |
| 2003 | Andreas Neubronner, producer; Andreas Neubronner, engineer; Murray Perahia, soloist | Chopin: Études, Op. 10 & Op. 25 |
| [39] |
| 2004 | Emanuel Ax | Haydn: Piano Sonatas Nos. 29, 31, 34, 25 & 49 |
| [40] |
| 2005 | David Russell | Aire Latino (Morel, Villa-Lobos, Ponce, etc.) |
| [41] |
| 2006 | Evgeny Kissin | Scriabin, Medtner, Stravinsky |
| [42] |
| 2007 | Maurizio Pollini | Chopin: Nocturnes |
| [43] |
| 2008 | Garrick Ohlsson | Beethoven Sonatas, Vol. 3 |
| [44] |
| 2009 | Gloria Cheng | Piano Music of Stucky, Lutosławski |
| [45] |
| 2010 | Sharon Isbin | Journey to the New World |
| [46] |
| 2011 | Paul Jacobs | Messiaen: Livre du Saint-Sacrement |
| [47] |
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1970 and 2011. From 1967 to 1969 and in 1971 the award included instrumental performances. The award had several minor name changes:
The Grammy Award for Best Musical Album for Children was an honor presented to recording artists for quality children's music albums at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences 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".
The Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance was awarded from 1959 to 2011. The award was discontinued in 2012 in a major overhaul of Grammy categories; since 2012, recordings in this category have fallen under the Best Small Ensemble Performance category. The award has had several minor name changes:
The Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance has been awarded since 1959. There have been several minor changes to the name of the award over this time:
The Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance has been awarded since 1961. There have been several minor changes to the name of the award over this time:
The Grammy Award – Best Classical Vocal Solo has been awarded since 1959. There have been several minor changes to the name of the award over this time:
The Grammy Award for Best Classical Performance - Instrumental Soloist or Soloists was awarded from 1967 to 1971 and in 1987. Outside of these years the award has been divided into the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance and the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance.
The Grammy Award forBest Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance was awarded from 1959 to 2011. From 1967 to 1971, and in 1987, the award was combined with the award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance and awarded as the Grammy Award for Best Classical Performance – Instrumental Soloist or Soloists.
The Grammy Award for Best Classical Album was awarded from 1962 to 2011. The award had several minor name changes:
The Grammy Award for Best New Classical Artist was an honor presented to classical artists in 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1986. The Grammy Awards, an annual ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, are presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences 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".
The Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance was awarded from 1970 to 2011. Between 1986 and 1989 the award was presented as the Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance .
The Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album was awarded from 1987 to 2011. Until 1991 the award was known as the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Recording. In 2007, this category was renamed Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album. As of 2010 the category was split into two categories; Best Contemporary Folk Album and Best Americana Album.
The Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album was awarded from 1987 to 2011. Until 1993 the award was known as the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Recording.
The Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance was awarded between 1969 and 2011.
The Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album has been awarded since 1959. The award is generally given to the album producer, principal vocalist(s), and the composer and lyricist if they have written a new score which comprises 51% or more playing time of the album.
The Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album is an award that was first presented in 1959.
The Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album has been presented since 1961. From 1962 to 1971 and 1979 to 1991 the award title specified instrumental performances. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were presented, for works released in the previous year.
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Instrumental Performance was awarded from 1970 to 1990 and in 1993. The award had several minor name changes:
The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Performance was awarded from 1964 to 1967. The award had several minor name changes:
The Grammy Award for Best Classical Instrumental Solo was first awarded during the annual Grammy Awards ceremony in 2012.