Category Archives: Concerts

The final concert of the Second Half of the Proms (given that the Last Night does not count!) Monteverdi’s Vespers of the Blessed Virgin on its 400th anniversary, was another one that ordinarily I would not have chosen to attend, … Continue reading →

The penultimate concert of the second half-season featured the BBC’s Manchester-based orchestra, the BBC Philharmonic. Like their London counterpart, the male players wear white jackets. They appeared with their Chief Conductor Gianandrea Noseda in what must be one of his … Continue reading →

Wednesday was the final chance to hear the BBC Symphony Orchestra before their appearance on Saturday in the Last Night, this time under their Czech principal conductor Jiří Bělohlávek, who will also conduct the Last Night for only the second … Continue reading →

So we’re into the last few days of the Proms now, and today it was the turn of the French national orchestra, with a programme of French-related music. In the first half, it was two of Debussy’s well-known and popular … Continue reading →

The final week of the Proms began with a concert by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under their French conductor Stéphane Denève who has quite a presence on stage, in part thanks to hair that’s a bit like a red … Continue reading →

Sunday was “Henry Wood Day” and featured two Proms. The first was a recreation of the Last Night’s programme from 1910. This contained a large number of shorter items, a tradition continued in Last Nights to this day. The Prom … Continue reading →

The Royal Albert Hall was once again packed for the second concert featuring Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic, and again Rattle received cheers when he came on stage at the start. The programme was somewhat different today, however. Most … Continue reading →

This evening’s Prom was the first of two in a row to feature Sir Simon Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker. Such is Rattle’s popularity in this country that he is the only conductor I’ve seen so far to receive cheers … Continue reading →

Thursday’s Prom features the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under their French conductor, François-Xavier Roth, and so the first half of the programme was dedicated to French music. The opening piece by Rameau was rather lively, and was that sort … Continue reading →

It shows how little I was paying attention during Wednesday’s Prom, and also how lacking in any knowledge I am of German, that I didn’t even know the orchestra was a youth orchestra. Perhaps it’s due to seeing children performing … Continue reading →