Previewing the first weekend of Proms concerts, it was easy to see which would be the least compelling for this grown-up: Saturday’s - Music from Great British Films, featuring music by Walton, Vaughan Williams et al. No thanks.
Friday’s opening night gig, the Elgar Cello Concerto and Beethoven 9, had looked stongest before the event; it proved only mildly diverting, straying uncomfortably close to Soothing Classical Crossover Greats for Nice People.
Sunday’s Prom, featuring 18thC opera excerpts by French composer Rameau, had seemed a bit too recherché for this listener. Especially as it was to be decorated by ballet, as it would have been in its 1700s royal court setting.
Wrong! Prom 3 was magnificent, revealing Rameau’s brilliance to a largely unsuspecting new audience. The classical troupe, dancing in front of English Baroque Soloists, were engaging, but they were upstaged by Dance For All, the electrifying South African troupe, backed by the exciting Buskaid Soweto String Ensemble.
Pre-Revolutionary French operatic court music dramatically refreshed by performers from an African slum! Hallelujah! Music is music is music: forget the labels.
This was inspired Proms programming, opening new doors for millions: bravo! The 2007 season is off to a flying start.
Gerry Smith
Monday 16 July 2007
Wednesday 11 July 2007
The Proms – massive annual London festival – kicks off on Friday
The Proms, the massive London classical festival, kicks off on Friday (13 July) and runs for seven weeks to 8 September.
Like any body of music, from rock to hip-hop, folk to jazz, the Proms has its share of stellar sequences, mediocre mush, and worse. The top gigs, best experienced standing on the floor of the Albert Hall, are usually music year highlights for grown-ups.
World-class concerts – must-hear music/must-see performers in the programme of 71 gigs include:
· Tuesday 24 July: Verdi’s Macbeth, London Phil
· Monday 6 August: Beethoven 8 etc, Renee Fleming
· Tuesday 7 August: Bach cantatas, Bach Collegium Japan
· Sunday 12 August: Wagner’s Gotterdammerung
· Friday 24 August: Bruckner 8, Royal Concertgebouw
All concerts are also broadcast on BBC Radio 3, accessible online.
Beware the Proms geeks, though. Classical audiences always have more than their fair share of weirdos - the jerks who had no friends at school. They don’t improve with age, and the Proms attracts them in droves. The "legendary" Last Night – squirm-inducing Boy Scouts acting silly for a TV audience of, er, people who must watch a lot of TV - should be avoided at all costs.
Gerry Smith
Like any body of music, from rock to hip-hop, folk to jazz, the Proms has its share of stellar sequences, mediocre mush, and worse. The top gigs, best experienced standing on the floor of the Albert Hall, are usually music year highlights for grown-ups.
World-class concerts – must-hear music/must-see performers in the programme of 71 gigs include:
· Tuesday 24 July: Verdi’s Macbeth, London Phil
· Monday 6 August: Beethoven 8 etc, Renee Fleming
· Tuesday 7 August: Bach cantatas, Bach Collegium Japan
· Sunday 12 August: Wagner’s Gotterdammerung
· Friday 24 August: Bruckner 8, Royal Concertgebouw
All concerts are also broadcast on BBC Radio 3, accessible online.
Beware the Proms geeks, though. Classical audiences always have more than their fair share of weirdos - the jerks who had no friends at school. They don’t improve with age, and the Proms attracts them in droves. The "legendary" Last Night – squirm-inducing Boy Scouts acting silly for a TV audience of, er, people who must watch a lot of TV - should be avoided at all costs.
Gerry Smith
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
