For information on The Last Night of the Proms 2012 click here

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Friday 13 July 2012

This was live from the Royal Albert Hall, London

Review from The Telegraph

Review from The Guardian

image from wiki commons

Yes folks, it’s time for that wonderful celebration of music and great British institution The Proms and the season kicks off on Friday 13th ( superstitious? ) I will be recommending my own choices of concert from time to time but do check out the whole season to see if there’s anything which particularly appeals to you. There seems to be something for everyone and every Prom is broadcast live on wonderful radio 3.

Expect proceedings to get off to a bang with Mark-Anthony Turnage’s punchy brass and percussion fanfare. After that London itself is celebrated with Elgar’s pen portrait of the city at the turn of the 20th century and described by the composer as ‘cheerful and Londony’. Yorkshireman Frederick Delius was born 150 years ago and will be celebrated throughout the season with some of his major works, tonight it’s his setting of Walt Whitman’s poem Sea Drift, an exploration of the experience of bereavement through a seabird’s loss of his mate. With this year also being Her Majesty the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, it’s music with a royal connections that makes up the second half: Michael Tippett’s joyous and lyrical Suite for the Birthday of Prince Charles and Elgar’s Coronation Ode, which brings the concert to a rousing climax.

Mark-Anthony Turnage - Canon Fever  - World Premiere
Elgar – Overture ‘Cockaigne (In London Town)’
Delius – Sea Drift
INTERVAL - Stephen Johnson explores Elgar’s Coronation Ode
Tippett – Suite for the Birthday of Prince Charles
Elgar – Coronation Ode
Susan Gritton – soprano
Sarah Connolly – mezzo-soprano
Robert Murray – tenor
Gerald Finley – bass-baritone
Bryn Terfel – bass-baritone
BBC Symphony Chorus.  BBC Symphony Orchestra
Edward Gardner conductor (Canon Fever, Coronation Ode)
Sir Roger Norrington conductor (Cockaigne)
Sir Mark Elder conductor (Sea Drift)
Martyn Brabbins conductor (Suite for the Birthday of Prince Charles)
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Last year we had the “inovation” of Maestro Cam whereby we had the option of a musician’s view of the conductor and some daft commentary which really interfered with the enjoyment of the music. Maestro Cam without the commentary would have been good. This year, if we press the red button, we are treated to the imagined thoughts of one of the composers whose music is featured in the concert, interspersed with “up-to-the-minute tweets from viewers”.  Oh for goodness sake!
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This concert was live on radio 3 at 19.30

It was on BBC 2 television and BBC HD starting at 20.30.

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All Prom concerts are broadcast live on BBC Radio 3, 90 – 93FM, on Digital Radio and Online
All Proms broadcasts are available on demand for 7 days.
Many Proms are repeated on weekday afternoons in Afternoon on 3.
Selected Proms are shown on BBC television
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Several prominent musicians select their must-see Prom in The Telegraph
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