“The Greatest Music Festival in the World”
Tony Woodcock, President & CEO of the Minnesota Orchestra, and a native of Great Britain, shares his perspective of the London BBC Proms:
The Proms at the Royal Albert Hall is without doubt the greatest music festival in the world. A bold statement, I realize, given other festivals around the world, but it’s absolutely true. Just take a look at the scale of the Proms. They begin in July and end in September, they include nearly 100 concerts during this time given by the greatest orchestras and performers, and all in that amazing space called the Royal Albert Hall (RAH) which seats 6000-7000 people! There are evening concerts, late-night concerts, and concerts in the park and every single one is broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 as well as to countless radio stations across the globe, with many events also televised. The overall exposure to the greatest music for such a vast number of people is amazing.
Then there is the audience... and this explains the term “Proms.” The original concert series was promoted by an impresario called Robert Newman in the 19th century and revolved around the idea that people could “promenade” during the concert rather than have fixed seating. This idea has been perpetuated and now finds its modern equivalent in the “promenade” area at the RAH, which is the main floor space where all the seats have been removed. The genuine Prom audience stands for the whole concert. This audience is remarkably young, full of highjinks and very well-organized. Their chants to the orchestra, declaimed by 40 or 50 young voices are legendary. I remember one concert attended by Margaret Thatcher who was Prime Minister at the time. Affairs of state made her late for the start, and the concert was held until she arrived. As she took her seat the chant began; “So… where have you been Mrs. T.?” The other amazing thing about this audience is that during the music they are totally attentive and silent.
So, I can’t wait for our Proms concert. And you can hear it live as well on MPR (Classical 99.5FM) and see the whole concert televised on TPT Channel 2 on September 6. Even on the radio and on TV you will be able to capture something of the lively atmosphere of this unique festival.
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
