The “world’s greatest classical music festival”. Such has been the tagline of the BBC Proms for as long as I, at least, can remember. But is there weight to this claim?
Founded by the musical impresario Robert Newman, the Proms has run continuously since 1895 — save for short wartime interruptions — and, on balance, its audience size, duration, global reach, prestige, access, and cost are unrivalled. Speaking as the first non-native English conductor of the Last Night of the Proms, in 2007, Jiří Bělohlávek described the Proms as “the world’s largest and most democratic musical festival”. Today, promming tickets cost £8, including fees, regardless of whether you book online or in person. In an age of ticket touts and masters, the Proms continues to bring the chalice of high culture to “the people”: world-leading orchestras for the price of a London lager.
The use of the word “democratic” has gained momentum in academic musicology over the last two decades. How it might refer to pricing strategy is relatively straightforward, but how it might pertain to programming and marketing is up for debate.
Newman’s vision in 1894 was thus: “I am going to run nightly concerts and train the public by easy stages. Popular at first, gradually raising the standard until I have created a public for classical and modern music.” This year’s festival was announced on Thursday 24th April. That morning, while driving from Oxfordshire to Staffordshire, I found myself flitting between numerous local and national radio stations, all of which were heralding with fanfare The Traitors Prom (26 July). No doubt, this is a creative idea for appealing to new audiences, but its foregrounding calls into question contemporary manifestations of Newman’s vision. 130 years on, and, in terms of media marketing at least, are we still at the “popular” stage?
A deeper dive into the season reveals a sparkling roster of musical gems on offer. Prom 6 (22 July) pairs Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique with Mark Simpson’s sci-fi inspired ZEBRA (or, 2-3-74: The Divine Invasion of Philip K. Dick). Prom 8 features Berio’s Sequenza V for solo trombone: a piece requiring the performer to use multiphonics, plunger mutes, inhalation, and mime, before turning to the audience to ask “Why?”. Prom 17 presents two clarinet concerti: Copland’s virtuosic stalwart alongside Artie Shaw’s 8-minute offering. And then there is Prom 19, the late-night celebration of Arvo Pärt at 90.
In a previous iteration of this piece, I confused the Relaxed Prom with the notion of a relaxing prom. This meaningful attempt to cater to the widest possible audience should absolutely be celebrated, as should the aforementioned financial considerations, and a whole host of other efforts to “democratize” participation. The Proms make their first visit to Sunderland, as well as descending on Belfast, Bradford, Bristol, and Gateshead. It was an incredible phenomenon to be driving through London, indeed right past Hyde Park, on Friday evening as Lisa Batiashvili’s performance of Sibelius’ Violin Concerto was streamed live from the Royal Albert Hall. Such efforts to expand access and coverage deserve applause.
The curators of any concert series are destined to grapple with Lydgate’s timeless adage: “You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.” What might “democratisation” mean when it comes to musical programming? Curators must contend with the epistemological boundaries of “classical music” before deciding which performances depart to such an extent that they no longer reflect “what it says on the tin”. These debates have roared in musicology for many years, and, to a large extent, everyone to whom I have ever spoken about this has a different opinion on the matter. Is the presence of an orchestra, as per Prom 2 (The Great American Songbook and Beyond with Samara Joy) and Prom 22 (Soul Revolution) enough to warrant their inclusion? For what it’s worth, one of my most cherished Proms was The Radio 1 Ibiza Prom of 2015. However, foregrounding – albeit excellent – jazz, soul, and reality TV may cause more curatorial headaches going forwards. Will the Proms remain as “The World’s Greatest Classical Music Festival” or, perhaps one day, become “The World’s Greatest Music Festival”.
This year’s Proms feature Birtwistle dancing with Beethoven, the world’s only professional one-handed concert pianist, the “father of Holy Minimalism”, and numerous other nocturnal treats. Let us continue to revisit Newman’s vision.
The BBC Proms 2025 started this week and runs until Saturday 13 September.
