Prom 75: Last Night of the Proms – 8.09.18

[David-G]

Interesting that the "big tune" from the Fantasy on the Tempest reuses music from Cleopatra which we heard on Wednesday.

[Beef Oven!]

That Canadian boy sure could sing! And what irony with the reactionaries in the audience waving EU flags at the end of the sea-songs

[Barbirollians]

I cannot abide Andrew Davis's bumptious speeches and I find most of his conducting pretty boring . A Last Night to miss for me .

I also hate the new itty bitty Essential Classics style first halves of the Last Night . Until a few years back one often at least had a concerto with a very good soloist in the first half.

[jonfan]

Wow, a great first half with very effective programming and an attentive audience. BBC Singers nailed the Bluebird without resorting to a solo soprano on the top line for safety(Alpie take note )

[jonfan]

I cannot abide Andrew Davis's bumptious speeches and I find most of his conducting pretty boring . A Last Night to miss for me .

I also hate the new itty bitty Essential Classics style first halves of the Last Night . Until a few years back one often at least had a concerto with a very good soloist in the first half.

Good-bye then. A pity you can’t stay to celebrate the end of a superb seating with a party.

[Barbirollians]

Good-bye then. A pity you can’t stay to celebrate the end of a superb seating with a party.

This year I am giving it a miss and catching up on the Bodyguard on i-player !

[Beef Oven!]

Enjoyed that first half more than any I can remember. So did me ol’ mum who’s watching with me!

This might be the best Proms season in a very long time, right down to the last night.

[jonfan]

Enjoyed that first half more than any I can remember. So did me ol’ mum who’s watching with me!

This might be the best Proms season in a very long time, right down to the last night.

[teamsaint]

well, until the interval, at any rate..........

[bluestateprommer]

Pretty enjoyable first half, where admittedly with the Stanford and Parry selections, unlike the Panufnik, I had the words with which to follow along (c/o various albums via the Chandos website). Amusing to hear Gerald Finley recall that the first concert that he attended as a fresh London student was this concert.

[Wychwood]

Agreed, great so far. But is there really a need for two presenters on such an occasion? Over-egging, surely....?

[ardcarp]

I cannot abide Andrew Davis's bumptious speeches and I find most of his conducting pretty boring

Au contraire, I find him excellent, especially in the English repertoire and with choirs. Mind you I could do without those two massive conductor-magnifying screens. No idea what his speech will be like. Will he dare venture a view on Brexit, however obliquely?

Loved Stanford's Bluebird and Parry's Blest Pair of Nylons.

[Petrushka]

Great to have Andrew Davis back...!

Yes, he's the ideal conductor for this event. Others have come and gone but Sir AD shows how to do it.

[bluestateprommer]

Agreed, great so far. But is there really a need for two presenters on such an occasion? Over-egging, surely....?

Yes, because in order to have spoken-word material presented both from the box and backstage with continuity, you need two presenters, one in the box and one roaming where needed. Ian Skelly is speaking with different European radio presenters now (one of them Swedish), while Georgia Mann will report separately from the Arena and elsewhere.

BTW, my ignorance of UK regional accents is pretty vast, so can someone indicate the provenance of Jess Gillam's accent for less-than-fully-informed Americans (like me)? Her accent is very distinctive, but I just don't know where to place it regionally.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Yes, he's the ideal conductor for this event. Others have come and gone but Sir AD shows how to do it.