Karl Jenkins’s The Armed Man claims top spot in Classic FM Hall of Fame
The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace has been crowned Britian’s favourite piece of classical music, claiming the number one position in the Classic FM Hall of Fame 2026. This monumental achievement marks the first time a living composer has topped the poll.
Karl Jenkins writes, “I am deeply honoured to learn that The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace has been voted Britain’s favourite piece of classical music in the 2026 Classic FM Hall of Fame. To become the first living composer to reach the number one position is profoundly humbling and gratifying, and to some degree I’m taken aback, especially when I reflect on the great masters, past and present, that sit below me on this list. As the cliché says, we stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before, and I cherish the fact that through my music, I have introduced many new devotees to the great composers of the genre. As I look back with great fondness to the premiere in 2000 at the first ever Classic FM concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall, I’m delighted that this piece has found resonance globally with so many of you over the years."
He adds, "While it is with regret that I acknowledge that there has been no let-up in war and conflict since I dedicated the piece to the victims of Kosovo, we continue to make music in remembrance of those who have fallen and in the hope that humanity can find a way to heal”.
Commissioned for the millennium year by The Royal Armouries, The Armed Man has travelled the world since its premiere at the Royal Albert Hall by the National Youth Choir with Julian Lloyd Webber as a soloist, and passed the 3000th performance mark in 2024 during Karl Jenkins’s 80th birthday year.
The Classic FM Hall of Fame 2026 also featured four other works by Karl Jenkins, including Adiemus from Songs of Sanctuary, Palladio, Requiem, as well as his Gloria, entering the list for the first time.
Throughout 2026, Karl Jenkins takes to the conductor’s rostrum for a UK tour of The Armed Man, opening in Nottingham on Sunday 19 April, with dates following in Liverpool, London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester. Karl Jenkins will be joined on tour by mezzo-soprano Kathryn Rudge, full orchestra and choruses including Crouch End Festival Chorus, Canzonetta choir, Côr Caerdydd, RSNO Chorus and Manchester Chorale choir. This summer, Sir Karl also conducts his most recent major choral work, One World, at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Wales on 7 July 2026.
The Classic FM Hall of Fame 2026 also featured multiple works by other Boosey & Hawkes composers, with Christopher Tin’s The Lost Birds rising to 19th place, and his Civilization themes, Sogno di Volare and Baba Yetu, also featuring in the list. Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story Suite re-entered the chart for the first time in over a decade and there were five entries from Dmitri Shostakovich, which included his Piano Concerto No.2, rising to 9th position. Additionally, the Hall of Fame featured works by Joe Hisaishi, Eric Whitacre, Peter Maxwell Davies, Aaron Copland, Gerald Finzi, and Igor Stravinksy .
> View the full Classic FM Hall of Fame 2026
> Further information on Work: The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace (full orchestra version)
Photo: Sir Karl Jenkins with Classic FM's Dan Walker - Classic FM