online proms programme notes

[mercia]

sorry to be a bore, but does anyone happen to know why we don't seem to be getting online programme notes for the concerts this year [at least they haven't appeared yet for the first night] - I thought they were really good last year - did I miss some announcement about them ?

[arthroceph]

Not boring, because I didn't now about last year's notes.

I only noticed these special (almost) hidden notes in the "Words and Music" programme,

Best to adopt a "where's Wally?" attitude when wiewing the pages, I'm guessing.

[french frank]

sorry to be a bore, but does anyone happen to know why we don't seem to be getting online programme notes for the concerts this year [at least they haven't appeared yet for the first night] - I thought they were really good last year - did I miss some announcement about them ?

I suppose they may appear when they've got their act together, but there doesn't seem to be any eager beaver telling you where to find them yet. Agree - they were superlative.

[Petrushka]

The online programmes are very handy when it comes to learning about new works or having the words printed for vocal works. Anoraks who wanted a list of the orchestra personnel could find them there as well. The Proms programmes are easily the best in the business and I still have every one where I've attended apart from two I accidentally left behind in the hall .

[5against4]

Email received today:

"Thank you for your email.

We have been unable to find a technology solution that allows the programme notes to be viewed on all devices. The take-up for our online programmes was low and the process we have been using was very time-consuming. We have therefore decided to focus our resources elsewhere. We have increased our digital publishing offering this season, releasing versions of the Proms Guide both for Kindle and iPad and publishing a free iPad digital supplement, the BBC Proms Companion 2013. We will continue to build on our digital publishing strategy in the future.

We understand that, as a user of the online programme notes, this is disappointing, but hope that you will enjoy the 2013 season nonetheless."

(my first post, by the way; been a very occasional observer from time to time...)

[salymap]

Email received today:

"Thank you for your email.

We have been unable to find a technology solution that allows the programme notes to be viewed on all devices. The take-up for our online programmes was low and the process we have been using was very time-consuming. We have therefore decided to focus our resources elsewhere. We have increased our digital publishing offering this season, releasing versions of the Proms Guide both for Kindle and iPad and publishing a free iPad digital supplement, the BBC Proms Companion 2013. We will continue to build on our digital publishing strategy in the future.

We understand that, as a user of the online programme notes, this is disappointing, but hope that you will enjoy the 2013 season nonetheless."

(my first post, by the way; been a very occasional observer from time to time...)

Welcome 5against4 - what a useful and interesting post for your first one.

[mercia]

well thank you very much 5against {and welcome} - I had a feeling it would be to do with technology and/or a time-consuming process
how do they know the take-up was low I wonder - oh well, perhaps by next year solutions will have been found

[edashtav]

Damnable Dumbing Down

Well done 5against4.
You have exposed another example of damnable, dumbing down at the Beeb.
Every penny saved can be given to enhance its redundancy top-up fund, or buy another wonderfully cheap minute of Jeremy Clarkson's time.

[french frank]

(my first post, by the way; been a very occasional observer from time to time...)

Thanks for the info, 5against4 - and yes, welcome.

'Low' take-up, eh? Well, say no more.

[VodkaDilc]

I trust members of the audience have not been using the online version of the programme notes instead of coughing up the few pounds for the printed programme. This sounds like a pretty good way to stop such wickedness.

[VodkaDilc]

The online programmes are very handy when it comes to learning about new works or having the words printed for vocal works. Anoraks who wanted a list of the orchestra personnel could find them there as well. The Proms programmes are easily the best in the business and I still have every one where I've attended apart from two I accidentally left behind in the hall .

The programmes are excellent - and not too expensive, as far as I remember. I was slightly shocked to find myself paying £7 for a programme at Covent Garden recently.

[Stephen Smith]

..... I was slightly shocked to find myself paying £7 for a programme at Covent Garden recently.

Can I ask - did you find the content of value? Did it explain any of the concepts used by the producer?

I gave up buying them (shelf space v cost/return on time) and instead use extracts from Kobbe. Denis Foreman's book or Grove Online for the synopsis and comment (latter bycourtesy of my County Library) plus the free cast list given out at the RoH. What I most miss are the artists biographies as so many of them are unknown to me - where they are from, what they have done and plan to do. So often, the programmes seemed of little relevance, and didn't answer, in any way, the questions in my mind ( e.g. the Warner Ring - why the crashed aircraft, the mirrored rubiks cube Tarnhelm??).

[VodkaDilc]

Can I ask - did you find the content of value? Did it explain any of the concepts used by the producer?
So often, the programmes seemed of little relevance, and didn't answer, in any way, the questions in my mind ( e.g. the Warner Ring - why the crashed aircraft, the mirrored rubiks cube Tarnhelm??).

There was a lot to read in the programme - some excellent background articles and details of the cast and so on. Very little about the actual production though, which, in the case of Gloriana, would have provided some interesting reading.

[Bryn]

Oh yes, making pdf files (readable on a very wide range of devices) available for download would have been such a major technological challenge for the Beeb. What a laughably disingenuous response from them. Even a simple text file for each concert would have been of some help.

[alywin]

Can I ask - did you find the content of value? Did it explain any of the concepts used by the producer?

I don't tend to buy RO programmes, but the Royal Ballet ones are generally pretty good (and a pound cheaper). Of course, there you rarely have the *need* to explain the producer's concepts :). You should see what passes for programme content elsewhere if you think the ROH ones are expensive :)

Oh yes, making pdf files (readable on a very wide range of devices) available for download would have been such a major technological challenge for the Beeb. What a laughably disingenuous response from them. Even a simple text file for each concert would have been of some help.

Mmm. And I was about to suggest that in retaliation for the RAH seemingly refusing to provide a programme seller in the gallery (first ice creams were sacrificed, now programmes) we could all simply download the notes. Obviously not.