The Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance) has been awarded since 1997. In its early years, its title included the addition "(with or without a conductor)" and up to 2012 it was known as Best Small Ensemble Performance..
In 1991 the Grammy for Best Chamber Music Performance also included small ensemble performances.
2012 overhaul and 2013 renaming
In 2012 the category was combined with the Best Chamber Music Performance category.
The restructuring of these categories was a result of the Recording Academy's wish to decrease the list of categories and awards. According to the Academy, "the Chamber category was folded into the Small Ensemble category, the only distinction having been the number of players in the group (Chamber being smaller), and the fact that Small Ensemble recording could, though not necessarily, employ a conductor."
In the new structure, recordings are eligible if the ensemble contains 24 or fewer members, not including the conductor.
In 2013, the category was renamed as Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance.
The award goes to the winning ensemble and its conductor (if applicable). The producer(s) and engineer(s) also receive an award if they have worked on over 50% of playing time on the album.
Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were presented, for works released in the previous year.
Winners and nominees
thumb|upright|Two-time winner [[Pierre Boulez.]]
thumb|upright|[[Claudio Abbado won in 1998 with the Berliner Philharmonic.]]
thumb|upright|1999 winners [[Steve Reich and Musicians.]]
thumb|upright|Two-time winners, the vocal ensemble [[Chanticleer (ensemble)|Chanticleer.]]
thumb|upright|Conductor [[Jeff von der Schmidt has won twice, both times alongside the Southwest Chamber Music.]]
thumb|upright|Russian conductor [[Yuri Bashmet won in 2008.]]
thumb|upright|[[Charles Bruffy won the award in 2009 with the Phoenix Chorale.]]
thumb|upright|Spanish conductor [[Jordi Savall won in 2011 alongside Hespèrion XXI and La Capella Reial de Catalunya.]]
thumb|upright|American violinist [[Hilary Hahn won in 2015 with Cory Smythe.]]
thumb|upright|Violinist [[Patricia Kopatchinskaja won in 2018 alongside the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.]]
thumb|upright|2019 winners [[Kronos Quartet.]]
{| class="wikitable"
! width="5%" | Year
! width="20%" | Recipient(s)
! width="20%" | Work
! width="33%" class=unsortable|Nominees
! width="2%" class=unsortable|Ref.
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1997
| Pierre Boulez (conductor) and the Ensemble Inter-Contemporain
| Boulez: ...Explosante-Fixe...
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1998
| Claudio Abbado (conductor), Berliner Philharmonic
| "Hindemith: Kammermusik No. 1 With Finale 1921, Op. 24, No. 1"
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 1999
| Steve Reich (conductor), Steve Reich and Musicians
| Reich: Music for 18 Musicians
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2000
| Joseph Jennings (conductor) and Chanticleer
| Colors of Love - Works of Thomas, Stucky, Tavener & Rands
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2001
| Christian Gausch (producer), Wolf-Dieter Karwatky (engineer) and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
| Shadow Dances (Stravinsky Miniatures - Tango; Suite No. 1; Octet, etc.)
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2002
| Helmut Mühle (producer), Philipp Nedel (engineer), Gidon Kremer (producer & artist) and Kremerata Baltica
| After Mozart
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2003
| Steve Barnett (producer), Preston Smith (engineer), Joseph Jennings (conductor), Chanticleer & Handel & Haydn Society of Boston
| Tavener: Lamentations and Praises
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2004
| Jeff von der Schmidt (conductor) and Southwest Chamber Music
| "Chávez: Suite for Double Quartet"
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2005
| Jeff von der Schmidt (conductor) and Southwest Chamber Music
| Chávez - Complete Chamber Music, Vol. 2
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2006
| Pierre Boulez (conductor), Hilary Summers (performer), and Ensemble Intercontemporain
| Boulez: Le Marteau Sans Maître, Dérive 1 & 2
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2007
| Peter Rutenberg (conductor) and Los Angeles Chamber Singers' Cappella
| Padilla: Sun of Justice
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2008
| Yuri Bashmet (conductor) and Moscow Soloists; Michael Brammann, engineer; Philipp Nedel, producer
| Stravinsky: Apollo, Concerto In D; Prokofiev: 20 Visions Fugitives
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2009
| Charles Bruffy (conductor) and Phoenix Chorale
| Spotless Rose: Hymns To The Virgin Mary
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2010
| Paul Hillier (conductor); Robina G. Young, producer; Brad Michel, engineer/mixer and Ars Nova Copenhagen & Theatre of Voices
| Lang, David: The Little Match Girl Passion
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2011
| Jordi Savall, conductor; Hespèrion XXI & La Capella Reial de Catalunya
| Dinastia Borja
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2012
| Rinde Eckert (librettist/performer); Steven Mackey (composer/performer); David Frost, producer; Eighth Blackbird
| Mackey: Lonely Motel - Music from Slide
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2013
| Eighth Blackbird
| Meanwhile
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2014
| Brad Wells & Roomful of Teeth
| Roomful of Teeth
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2015
| Hilary Hahn & Cory Smythe
| In 27 Pieces: The Hilary Hahn Encores
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2016
| Eighth Blackbird
| Filament
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2017
| Third Coast Percussion
| Steve Reich
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2018
| Patricia Kopatchinskaja & the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
| Death & the Maiden
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2019
| Laurie Anderson & the Kronos Quartet
| Landfall
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2020
| Attacca Quartet (ensemble); Antonio Oliart & Caroline Shaw (producers); Antonio Oliart (engineer)
| Shaw: Orange
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2021
| Pacifica Quartet; James Ginsburg (producer); Bill Maylone (engineer/mixer)
| Contemporary Voices
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| 2022
| Yo-Yo Ma & Emanuel Ax
| Beethoven: Cello Sonatas - Hope Amid Tears
|
| style="text-align:center;"|
|-
!2023
|Attacca Quartet
|Shaw: Evergreen
|
|
|-
!2024
|Roomful of Teeth
|Rough Magic
|
- <small>Anthony McGill & The Pacifica Quartet – American Stories</small>
- <small>Yo-Yo Ma, Emanuel Ax & Leonidas Kavakos – Beethoven For Three: Symphony No. 6 "Pastorale" and Op 1. No. 3</small>
- <small>Third Coast Percussion – Between Breaths</small>
- <small>Catalyst Quartet – Uncovered, Vol. 3: Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, William Grant Still & George Walker</small>
|
|-
!2025
|Caroline Shaw & So Percussion
|Rectangles and Circumstance
|
- <small>JACK Quartet – J.L. Adams: Waves & Particles</small>
- <small>Yo-Yo Ma, Leonidas Kavakos & Emanuel Ax – Beethoven for Three: Symphony No. 4 and Op. 97, 'Archduke</small>
- <small>Beth Willer, Christopher Cerrone & Lorelei Ensemble – Cerrone: Beaufort Scales</small>
- <small>Miró Quartet – Home</small>
|
|-
!2026
|Alan Pierson & Alarm Will Sound
|Dennehy: Land of Winter
|
- <small>Neave Trio - La Mer - French Piano Trios</small>
- <small>Lili Haydn & Paul Cantelon - Lullabies for the Brokenhearted</small>
- <small>Mak Grgić & Mateusz Kowalski - Slavic Sessions</small>
- <small>Third Coast Percussion - Standard Stoppages</small>
|
|}