I have just listened to the R3 relay of the first half of the Prom. Comparing it with the real thing, I have some observations:
Balance: To my mind the piano was far too dominant in the Ravel. It was matched perfectly in the RAH. The orchestral numbers were much reduced and they treated it as chamber music. Not so in the radio version, where the engineers appear to have thought it was Tchaikovsky: the many places where the piano blends into the background were presented with a huge piano sound - and with no subtlety at all. Similarly, a passage for two pianissimo harps came over as a double harp concerto.
Announcer: A sports commentator on the radio or the likes of Cormac Rigby and Tony Scotland in the heyday of R3 describes what the listener cannot see. Miss Bland last night (I don't know which interchangeable BBC voice it was) had her script to deliver and would do it at all costs. During the applause after the Wagner, she could have explained the sudden bursts (such as when the First Trumpet was acknowledged); instead she lectured us about what could be found online. Even when soloists were mentioned after the Ravel, she listed them in one breath, with no attempt to link the size of the ovation to the instrument. That is surely her job! Even the duet encore was mishandled: she announced that we were in for a surprise, but not until afterwards were we told what it was. All of this could have been described as it happened.
Coughers: They were less in evidence on radio than they were in the hall. At times (Slow movement of the Ravel, as if we couldn't guess) the coughers were determined to hog the limelight, as if it was mid-November. Perhaps the BBC has audience obliteration software.
The bloke next to BBC's Miss Bland: I had wondered who this was, especially when he took photos at the end, but it turned out to be one of the orchestra's admin people, who was interviewed while the stage was reset for the Ravel.
Speaking properly: Have the young completely given up talking proper English? One British orchestral player was interviewed. When I was young, if I had been interviewed on the BBC, I would have taken care to speak clearly and correctly. This young man, who sounded delightful, constantly used the "I was like" construction - as in "When I joined the orchestra, I was like: these players are all better than me." What happened to "I thought............"? I'm all in favour of informality, but......!
Rant over. Does anyone agree with any of this?
Balance: To my mind the piano was far too dominant in the Ravel. It was matched perfectly in the RAH. The orchestral numbers were much reduced and they treated it as chamber music. Not so in the radio version, where the engineers appear to have thought it was Tchaikovsky: the many places where the piano blends into the background were presented with a huge piano sound - and with no subtlety at all. Similarly, a passage for two pianissimo harps came over as a double harp concerto.
Announcer: A sports commentator on the radio or the likes of Cormac Rigby and Tony Scotland in the heyday of R3 describes what the listener cannot see. Miss Bland last night (I don't know which interchangeable BBC voice it was) had her script to deliver and would do it at all costs. During the applause after the Wagner, she could have explained the sudden bursts (such as when the First Trumpet was acknowledged); instead she lectured us about what could be found online. Even when soloists were mentioned after the Ravel, she listed them in one breath, with no attempt to link the size of the ovation to the instrument. That is surely her job! Even the duet encore was mishandled: she announced that we were in for a surprise, but not until afterwards were we told what it was. All of this could have been described as it happened.
Coughers: They were less in evidence on radio than they were in the hall. At times (Slow movement of the Ravel, as if we couldn't guess) the coughers were determined to hog the limelight, as if it was mid-November. Perhaps the BBC has audience obliteration software.
The bloke next to BBC's Miss Bland: I had wondered who this was, especially when he took photos at the end, but it turned out to be one of the orchestra's admin people, who was interviewed while the stage was reset for the Ravel.
Speaking properly: Have the young completely given up talking proper English? One British orchestral player was interviewed. When I was young, if I had been interviewed on the BBC, I would have taken care to speak clearly and correctly. This young man, who sounded delightful, constantly used the "I was like" construction - as in "When I joined the orchestra, I was like: these players are all better than me." What happened to "I thought............"? I'm all in favour of informality, but......!
Rant over. Does anyone agree with any of this?
)
started it with a beauty and confidence that marked out the whole concert. 
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