BBC Proms - Season 70

First aired: 7/15/2016 18 episodes

Episodes

1. First Night of the Proms, Part One

Aired: 7/15/2016

Katie Derham presents the launch of the world's greatest classical music festival from the Royal Albert Hall. The celebrations open with Tchaikovsky's ravishing Romeo and Juliet overture, the first in a series of musical works during the season marking 400 years since the death of Shakespeare. The 2016 BBC Proms also spotlights the cello, and tonight, the remarkable Argentine cellist Sol Gabetta makes her proms debut in Elgar's haunting Cello Concerto, the first of ten concertos for the instrument to be performed during the festival. Sakari Oramo conducts the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

2. First Night of the Proms, Part Two

Aired: 7/15/2016

Katie Derham presents the second half of the 2016 BBC Proms season opening from the Royal Albert Hall. Sakari Oramo conducts the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, the BBC National Chorus of Wales and mezzo-soprano soloist Olga Borodina in a performance of Prokofiev's celebrated cantata Alexander Nevsky. Created from the soundtrack Prokofiev originally composed for Sergey Eisenstein's landmark film, the music is dramatic and evocative, including the famous musical depiction of Battle on the Ice.

3. Prom 8: Strictly Prom

Aired: 7/22/2016

Could this be the glitziest Prom ever? Get your dancing shoes on and join Katie Derham and a whole host of your favourite Strictly Come Dancing professionals as they celebrate the music of dance. The BBC Concert Orchestra, conducted by Gavin Sutherland, embarks on a musical journey from foxtrot and waltz, to paso doble and tango, taking in a wonderful panorama of dancing and some stunning orchestral interludes on the way.

4. Prom 11: A Child of Our Time

Aired: 7/24/2016

Michael Tippett's secular oratorio A Child of Our Time is his most widely performed work. It is an impassioned protest against persecution and tyranny with an overriding message of peace. Renowned British baritone and composer Roderick Williams takes a look at the story behind A Child of Our Time and introduces conductor Mark Wigglesworth, the BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales and soloists Tamara Wilson (soprano), Susan Bickley (mezzo-soprano), Peter Hoare (tenor) and James Creswell (bass). In 1938, a young Polish Jew, whose parents were deported by the Nazis, shot a German diplomat in Paris. The Nazis seized on the assassination to rile Hitler's supporters into an anti-Semitic frenzy. Tippett shared the public horror at the events that followed and in 1939, began writing a musical protest, a work that expressed deep rage at the unprecedented crimes being committed by the Nazi regime, and despair at man's ability to commit acts of inhumanity.

5. Prom 27: Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto

Aired: 8/5/2016

Two Russian heavyweights and a living Scottish composer are the focus of tonight's prom, featuring the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under the direction of chief conductor in waiting Thomas Dausgaard. Finnish soloist Pekka Kuusisto performs Tchaikovsky's passionate and virtuosic Violin Concerto. It is followed by Petrushka, the first of a trio of landmark Stravinsky ballet scores for the Ballet Russes to be performed by Scottish orchestras. The concert opens with a world premiere of the first part of a new BBC commission from Helen Grime. Two Eardley Pictures - I: Catterline in Winter was inspired by the landscape paintings of Joan Eardley and folk music of the far north east.

6. Prom 29: The Planets with The NYO

Aired: 8/6/2016

The depiction of astrological characters in The Planets, from the cheeky gameplay of Mercury to the shattering impact of Mars, could be made for the resonance of the Royal Albert Hall. The power of Strauss's Also sprach Zarathustra is no less cinematic.

7. Prom 38: Gershwin Gala with the John Wilson Orchestra

Aired: 8/13/2016

Proms favourites the John Wilson Orchestra and their eponymous conductor celebrate the music and lyrics of one of the greatest song-writing partnerships in American history - George and Ira Gershwin. Expect hit after hit as singers Julian Ovenden, Louise Dearman and Matthew Ford perform crowd pleasers like Fascinatin' Rhythm, They All Laughed and many more. Classic orchestral numbers, including An American in Paris and a Rhapsody In Blue Overture, complete the line-up in a concert that features a bumper crop of the brothers' best-known tunes.

8. Prom 4: Ravel and Rachmaninov

Aired: 8/20/2016

Valery Gergiev conducts the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra in three popular classics - Ravel's hypnotic Bolero, the ravishing suite from Richard Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier and Rachmaninov's romantic third piano concerto, with the outstanding young pianist Behzod Abduraimov. Also in the programme is Galina Ustvolskaya's searing third symphony, Jesus Messiah, Save Us!, with text read tonight by Alexei Petrenko. Presented by Katie Derham.

9. Prom 49: Quincy Jones Prom

Aired: 8/22/2016

BBC Prom from the Royal Albert Hall which celebrates the career of composer, arranger, producer, conductor and all-round musical genius Quincy Jones. Jules Buckley and his Metropole Orkest lead the festivities on stage, celebrating Quincy's compositions, arrangements and productions from a career that has lasted over half a century. The musical and orchestral journey looks back at Quincy's early film and TV scores as well as his collaborations with the likes of Count Basie and Ray Charles, along with his momentous and iconic production work with The Brothers Johnson and Michael Jackson.

10. Prom 36: Jamie Cullum Prom

Aired: 8/23/2016

Multimillion-selling jazz supremo and master of all musical trades Jamie Cullum returns to the BBC Proms following his sell-out appearance in 2010. This time Jamie is joined by the talented conductor, composer and arranger Jules Buckley and the renegade musicians who make up The Heritage Orchestra. London's Roundhouse Choir, the Remi Harris Trio and emerging talent from BBC Introducing's canon join Jamie as he offers his own take on a collection of classic pop songs and delivers improvisational numbers from his enviable back catalogue and repertoire.

13. Prom 54: Mozart Requiem

Aired: 8/26/2016

From the Royal Albert Hall, three glorious works by Mozart, all written during the final months of his life. Conductor Ivan Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra are joined by Hanno Müller-Brachmann for the concert aria Per questa bella mano, and clarinettist Akos Acs is the soloist in the ever-popular Clarinet Concerto in A major. The prom concludes with Mozart's magnificent Requiem, with bass soloist Hanno Müller-Brachmann, soprano Lucy Crowe, mezzo-soprano Barbara Kozelj and tenor Jeremy Ovenden. The orchestra and soloists are joined by one of Europe's leading choirs, Collegium Vocale Gent. Presented by Petroc Trelawny.

14. Prom 21: Mozart from Memory

Aired: 8/26/2016

The Aurora Orchestra with conductor and founder Nicholas Collon return to the Proms with another performance entirely from memory. Not a note of music or a single music stand will be seen on the Royal Albert Hall stage as they tackle Mozart's final symphony, a piece packed full of joy and invention. Presenter Tom Service explores the process of committing a complete symphony to memory and, with the orchestra's help, unpicks this great work on stage for the Proms audience, deconstructing the final movement to explore Mozart's compositional genius.

15. Prom 43: Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra

Aired: 8/28/2016

From the Royal Albert Hall, Daniel Barenboim returns to the Proms with his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the celebrated ensemble of young Arabs and Israelis. Following his highly acclaimed Proms performance of Wagner's Ring in 2013, Barenboim conducts two Wagner overtures - Tannhauser and The Mastersingers of Nuremberg - alongside music from Gotterdammerung. The great pianist Martha Argerich is the soloist in Liszt's Piano Concerto No 1 and the programme also includes Jorg Widmann's lively Con Brio. Presented by Samira Ahmed.

16. Prom 64: Gustav Mahler: Symphony No 7 in E minor

Aired: 9/2/2016

Sir Simon Rattle conducts the Berlin Philharmonic in Mahler's radical Seventh Symphony.

17. Prom 74: Verdi – Requiem

Aired: 9/9/2016

Marin Alsop returns to the Proms stage to conduct Verdi’s magnificent Requiem, with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the Proms Youth Choir. The evening’s soloists include soprano Tamara Wilson.

18. Prom 56 – CBeebies Prom: A Musical Journey

Aired: 9/10/2016

CBeebies favourites take a musical journey through the countryside, around the world, back in time and into space with the BBC Concert Orchestra and conductor Jessica Cottis. Enjoy inspirational classical pieces and CBeebies themes while joining in with Andy, Cat, Chris, Gem, Rebecca, Mr Bloom and Mr William Shakespeare at the Royal Albert Hall.

19. Last Night of the Proms, Part One

Aired: 9/10/2016

Live from the Royal Albert Hall, Katie Derham introduces the final concert of the 2016 BBC Proms. The celebrations are led by the combined forces of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and the BBC Singers, with Finnish chief conductor Sakari Oramo, who returns to conduct the Last Night of the Proms for the second time. Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Florez is the star soloist, bringing some sparkling arias from the operas of Rossini, Donizetti and Offenbach. Also on the programme is the world premiere of a piece by young Scottish composer Tom Harrold, written for and performed by the Proms Youth Ensemble, along with players from the BBC Symphony Orchestra. We also hear Borodin's exuberant Polovtsian Dances, Britten's Matinées musicales, Butterworth's The Banks of Green Willow, and Jonathan Dove's Our revels now are ended, with baritone Duncan Rock.

20. Last Night of the Proms, Part Two

Aired: 9/10/2016

Katie Derham introduces the second half of the Last Night of the Proms live from the Royal Albert Hall. In this Olympic year, the second part of the concert begins with American composer Michael Torke's Javelin, which was originally performed at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. A selection of young singers perform Vaughan Williams's 1938 tribute to Henry Wood's 50th anniversary - Serenade to Music. The cross-genre British composer Anne Dudley contributes a special arrangement entitled Fiesta Caribena! And star tenor Juan Diego Florez returns to perform more spine-tingling Donizetti. The programme takes a trip around the UK in a celebration of Henry Wood's Fantasia on British Sea Songs, with contributions from the Proms in the Park in Colwyn Bay, Glasgow Green and Belfast. The Proms season comes to an end with the climax of Rule Britannia, Land of Hope and Glory and Jerusalem. The BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and the BBC Singers are conducted by Sakari Oramo.