THE WAR HORSE PROM

THE WAR HORSE PROM

BBC Concert Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall

BBC Proms

03.08.14

The real challenge for this eagerly awaited Proms special was to draw together the many elements, linked by nothing more than a desire to commemorate the Great War a century ago.

We were reminded of the famous women of WWI, of the animals other than horses who helped the war effort, of the combatants from the colonies … Gareth Malone and his Military Wives choir were involved too, together with the youth choir Cambiata North West. There was a Turkish contribution, and a selection of Rilke settings sung, in German, by baritone Duncan Rock.

Miraculously, under the baton of David Charles Abell, the whole thing worked almost seamlessly – no introductions, no applause – and the ninety minutes flew by.

At the heart of the sequence, of course, was the War Horse Suite, arranged by Adrian Sutton from his own music for the National Theatre's original stage show. The story was wordlessly told – though the author was a real presence on stage – with beautifully choreographed movement and the two Handspring puppets, now famous in their own right. Clever use of a period handheld camera brought the action close up, projected onto tattered banners high above the stage. This began right at the beginning, where Frank Bridge's Summer provided a soundtrack to the end of Edwardian innocence, as the Military Wives filed down with army boots for the young men we'd just seen carefree on the beach.

The choir gave us Holst and Elgar Part Songs – Home They Brought Her Warrior Dead and The Snow – and the young lads of Cambiata North West sang a new work specially commissioned from Sutton – Some See Us. A strong concept – a fierce response from “humanity's guardian angels”, “the sons and daughters we may never have”. Neither the words [Jonathan James] nor the music were especially memorable, but the same could be said of the New War Hymn, written in 1914 by the founder of the Proms, Sir Henry Wood.

Only Remembered – the old hymn used as a poignant theme in War Horse – framed the sequence, sung by Tim van Eyken. And there was an upbeat encore, as we sang along with the huge cast to Tipperary.

This Prom was one of several events to mark the centenary, including a lovely sequence from Michael Morpurgo [from his anthology Only Remembered], and a brief Lights Out Ceremony after the John Tavener Late Night Prom on August 4.

KISS ME KATE

KISS ME KATE

The John Wilson Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall

BBC Proms

02.08.14

Semi-staged in name only, this was a show of West End proportions and outstanding talents. A bigger stage than My Fair Lady in 2012, and a restored version of the score, played with Wilson's trademark lush precision.

Including so many dance sequences meant that we heard loads of orchestral numbers, and saw some amazing choreography. Too Darn Hot, for instance, with Jason Pennycooke, or Tony Yazbeck's tireless “Bianca” tap routine [as Calhoun/Lucentio].

The Shrew herself was Broadway star Alexandra Silber, giving a bold, sassy performance plenty big enough to fill this vast arena. Her tamer was Ben Davis, suitably arrogant and self-regarding.

James Docherty and Michael Jibson were the “Brush Up Your Shakespeare” heavies, excellent in their menacing adoration of Miss Vanessi, with a welcome gag about “like being on the inside of a birthday cake”.

But, as ever, the biggest pit band in captivity was the real star here, with the dapper, enthusiastic Wilson relishing every note, every encore, of Porter's rich, timeless score.

GLAMOROUS NIGHT

GLAMOROUS NIGHT 
– THE IVOR NOVELLO PROM

The Halle at the Albert Hall

09.08.12

What would Ivor have thought ? A whole programme of his music, in the Albert Hall, on the wireless, with the Halle, no less.

It's not the first time his music has been heard at the Proms, though; the 1914 season saw two parlour songs …

We might have expected the Concert Orchestra with Barry Wordsworth, even Vernon Midgely, and Ken Bruce narrating. But no, no expense spared here, with the Halle, no less, Mark Elder [an Ivor fan, apparently] and the inimitable Simon Callow to sketch the life of this remarkably versatile, and incredibly popular, man of the theatre, honouring the tunesmith and matinee idol who dominated London's stage musicals in the 1930s and 1940s. And how well he did it, with anecdotes immaculately timed, making the vast arena seem intimate and cosy.

And there were nice touches, like the sofa, and the elegant evening wear. The vocal selections were delivered by Sophie Bevan and Toby Spence: a good sense of the period, though these are modern voices, of course, with no-one to recall the stentorian tones of Olive Gilbert in her prime.

A very entertaining evening, and oddly moving, too; a welcome addition to the ever-widening musical remit of the BBC Proms.

try this for a proper review ....

PROM 13

Royal Albert Hall

26.07.09

We saw Mohican boy crossing the street in front of the Royal College of Music at least 90 minutes before the Prom.

Turns out he was featured on bongo and vibraphone.

Percussion was prominent in this new collaborative work – A Rough Guide to the Proms Family Orchestra – based loosely on the concept of Britten's guide, with which it shared the programme.

No narration in either, unfortunately, though the new piece, conducted by Lincoln Abbotts, did have Ian McMillan's verse: The night is salted with stars …

It was a varied ten minutes, influenced by folk music from England and Algeria, and featuring a wide array of instruments and talents, with a few BBCPO hands in there as mentors. Probably more fun to do than to hear.

Elsewhere, though, this was no dumbed-down kids' concert. Young Generation Artist Jennifer Pike gave us a rare Holst – A Song of the Night – and there was a world premiere of Richard Rodney Bennett's orchestral version of his Lilliburlero Variations. All played very stylishly by the BBC Phil, on early duty after their wonderful Prom of the night before.