The BBC Proms Guide comes out in April, but avid concertgoers will have pre-ordered this guide book months in advance of its release.
“Prommers” are people with season tickets to this classical music series, and amongst them you might meet those who plan on doing the “grand slam”, which is attending every concert, or those doing the “little slam”, which is attending all the concerts which are held at the Royal Albert Hall.
The BBC Proms, more formally known as the BBC Promenade Concerts, is an eight week long series of daily classical music concerts.
The term “Promenade” comes from the tradition in early years of the audience members promenading, or taking a stroll during the concert.
The Proms also include other events at locations around the UK, but the backbone of the series is the wonderful orchestral concerts held at the Royal Albert Hall in South Kensington.
The total number of concerts put on in the 2009 series was 100, and it ranks as one of the world’s largest music festivals.
The concerts began in 1895 and were the brainchild of Robert Newman.
It was his idea that if he created a more informal atmosphere, ordinary people would be attracted to classical music.
The early Proms allowed the audience to walk around, eat, drink, and smoke, and also featured tickets prices that were quite low.
Newman had a concert hall built just for the series, the Queen’s Hall Orchestra.
All of this was done to encourage a new audience for classical music, and it was successful in capturing the public’s attention.
In 1927, the BBC took over the Promenade series and in 1942 it was moved to its current home at the Royal Albert Hall.
Over the years the concerts have featured both popular classical and contemporary music.
In the 2009 Prom Season, the composers who featured highly were Georg Handel, Henry Purcell, Joseph Haydn, and Felix Mendelssohn and Bollywood and Indian classical music were featured in a concert.
A BBC Proms Guide can help you navigate your way around this remarkable musical offering.
Visiting The Proms 2010
Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore, South Kensington, SW7 2AP
16th July 2010 until 11th September 2010
Telephone: 020 7589 8212
Opening Times
Various times
Ticket Prices
Various
Photo courtesy: amandabhslater
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