Tag Archives: BBC Proms

Prom 58 “The silence speaks”: A gripping Kullervo

Posted on August 30, 2015 by Mark Pullinger

Sibelius: BBCSO/Oramo **** Royal Albert Hall, 29th August 2015 After a lacklustre trio of concerts traversing the seven symphonies, Sibelius’ 150th anniversary celebrations at the Proms peaked with a gripping encounter with Kullervo, his early, category-defying epic based on the … Continue reading →

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Prom 53: Shostakovich’s Orango keeps the Red Flag flying over South Kensington

Posted on August 25, 2015 by Mark Pullinger

Bartók/Mozart/Shostakovich: Philharmonia/Salonen *** Royal Albert Hall, 24th August 2015 Fervent flag-waving is usually reserved for the Last Night of the Proms, so what was going on in this Philharmonia concert? The Arena was awash with a sea of red flags, … Continue reading →

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Prom 46: Great Danes in spirited Carl Nielsen anniversary celebration

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Mark Pullinger

Nielsen/Brahms: Danish NSO/Luisi **** Royal Albert Hall, 20th August 2015 “Denmark is not all Lego and pastries!” quipped Nikolaj Znaider to the Albert Hall audience. Indeed not. It is the land of Carl Nielsen, whose 150th birthday was celebrated in … Continue reading →

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Prom 44: Barenboim as Bottom? A dream of an evening with the West-Eastern Divan

Posted on August 19, 2015 by Mark Pullinger

Schoenberg/Beethoven/Tchaikovsky: West-Eastern Divan/Barenboim ***** Royal Albert Hall, 18th August 2015 “Let me play the lion too.” I hadn’t associated Daniel Barenboim with Nick Bottom from A Midsummer Night’s Dream before, but during Beethoven’s Triple Concerto, with the maestro urgently directing … Continue reading →

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Prom 43: Saturation point as Vänskä draws Sibelius cycle to a close

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Mark Pullinger

Sibelius: BBCSO/Vänskä *** Royal Albert Hall, 17th August 2015 For the third and final leg of the Proms Sibelius symphony marathon, the baton was passed to Osmo Vänskä, with a change of orchestra from the BBC Scottish to the BBC … Continue reading →

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