Review: BBC PROMS: FIRST NIGHT OF THE PROMS 2024, Royal Albert Hall

Unlike the Last Night of the Proms, which has developed its own mythology and status (thanks to the traditions that surround it), the First Night of the Proms is not bound by any particular structure or the need to play any specific pieces; there’s a freedom to it that spills out into the audience, eager for the new season to get underway.

The programme for this year’s opening gambit saw two rarely played pieces, and the world première of a BBC commission, sandwiched between two more well known compositions. If ever the First Night should become more structured, it should be based on this; having familiarity to fall back on means the audience quickly relaxes into the evening, and is perhaps more willing to engage with novelty - and the decision to start with the celebratory flourish that is Handel’s Music for the Royal Fireworks (“overture”) immediately sets the tone.

This year is the 200th anniversary of the birth of Anton Bruckner, and the Proms are offering several opportunities for audiences to celebrate this - starting with the inclusion of “Psalm 150”. Much like the sea shanties and “Rule, Britannia!” became fixtures in the Last Night, it would be fitting for this Bruckner offering to appear more regularly in the First Night; it uses music as holy praise, referencing various instruments in the verses, and produces a spine-tingling blend of chorus and orchestra.

Clara Wieck (later Schumann) composed her Piano Concerto in A minor by the time she was 16, and regularly performed virtuoso concertos by other composers throughout her life. It was fitting, then, that Isata Kanneh-Mason took her place at the piano at this Prom - expressive and dynamic in the first and third movements, tender and delicate in the “Romanze” (particularly in combination with the solo cello). Her performance met with a rapturous response from the packed audience, and the reward was a beautiful encore of Gershwin’s “The Man I Love”.

After the interval it was time for the first of this year’s BBC commissions. Ben Nobuto’s “Hallelujah Sim.” is inspired by the ‘Hallelujahs’ found in Bruckner’s “Psalm 150”, and plays out like a game - the chorus having to complete various levels before reaching the final “amen”. Its frantic and discordant beginning did momentarily make me wonder what I had let myself in for, however the piece’s playful side came to the fore the more it continued. 

Its skill lies in treating the voices of the BBC Singers and BBC Symphony Chorus as instruments in their own right, as well as pushing the boundaries of the orchestra - each section almost doubling up as percussion at various moments. Nobuto’s composition created a terrific buzz in the Victorian concert hall, and left the audience in no doubt that they had experienced something special.

Closing the night with one of the most famous classical pieces of all-time is a masterstroke. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor has an instantly recognisable opening, a motto that repeats across the symphony (and that is synonymous with drama the world over), and a scale to it that means it can just about be contained in the Royal Albert Hall’s auditorium - despite its struggles to burst through the ceiling. The BBC Symphony Orchestra performed it with real gusto.

As I noted at last year’s ‘Enigma’ Variations Prom, conductor Elim Chan has a magnetic presence and a real flair for the theatrical - she lives and breathes every note and every beat; this was perfectly suited to all of the pieces on the First Night programme, even in the quieter and more reflective moments. Having individuals like Chan on the podium means that being in the room is all the more important, as the televised broadcasts have yet to establish ‘conductor cam’ on the red button.

In my mind, this First Night of the Proms was an unqualified success, and a true celebration of the format. That it put a female conductor and female soloists centre-stage, and featured a new piece from a British-Japanese composer, makes a real statement - hopefully one of intent for the season to come.

The BBC Proms run at the Royal Albert Hall until 14 September

Photo credit: Simon Paul

To post a comment, you must register and login.