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
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