The ASCAP Foundation announced the winners of the 57th annual Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Awards on October 21, 2026, recognizing exceptional achievements in music writing and media.
The awards celebrate authors and journalists across concert and pop music categories.
In the pop music category, Gayle Wald was awarded the Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Book Award for “This Is Rhythm: Ella Jenkins, Children’s Music, and the Long Civil Rights Movement.” The book explores the intersection of children’s music and social activism through the career of Ella Jenkins.
The ASCAP Foundation also recognized excellence in digital and broadcast media, reflecting the evolving ways music history and theory are consumed. Rick Beato received a Special Recognition Award in the Broadcast/Media category for his YouTube series “Everything Music,” which has gained a wide following for its technical analysis and interviews.
Other media honors included:
- Broadcast/Media Award (Pop): Isaac Gale, Ryan Olson, and David McMurry for their documentary film “Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted.”
- Broadcast/Media Award (Concert): Gail Wein for the podcast series “Classical Gas.”
- Article Award (Pop): Ben Sisario for his reporting on the technical challenges of music preservation in the piece “The Race Against Time to Save Music Legends’ Decaying Tapes.”
The Paul Williams “Loved the Liner Notes” Award was presented to Ruth Komanoff Underwood for her essay featured in the Frank Zappa box set “Cheaper than Cheep.” This specific award recognizes the importance of written commentary and historical context provided within physical music releases.
Established to honor the legacy of composers Deems Taylor and Virgil Thomson, the awards continue to serve as a primary benchmark for music journalism and scholarship, spanning traditional biographies to modern multimedia platforms.
