Cathcart Proms 28 May 1998

Concert Review: 28 May 1998

Cathcart Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, London, UK

The Royal Albert Hall has one of the best atmospheres of any concert hall I have been to. And this year’s Cathcart Proms really was one of the best concerts I have ever been to.

It was a spectacular evening of the best of British music, performed by the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, the Royal Choral Society, the Genevans Choir (from Pennsylvania), the Band of Her Majesty’s Grenadier Guards, and a piper of Her Majesty’s Scots Guards.

The Royal Albert Hall in London, England, holds 5,000, is circular, and the acoustics are brilliant. Built by the Victorians without today’s technology they did a wonderful job. And there is such a wonderful atmosphere there.

Dr. Cathcart

It was Dr. George Cathcart who started the famous Henry Wood Promenade concerts back in 1895, providing the financial backing for it, against all the odds, and those Proms now run throughout the summer each year, being sponsored now by the British Broadcasting Corporation.

But in recognition of what Dr. Cathcart did, we now have the Cathcart Proms as well, which is one annual concert held in the spring.

Brilliant Music!

A brilliant selection, a lot of it 20th century music, as well as traditional favourites. But we started with the greatest national anthem in the world, God Save the Queen, (click for MIDI) which we all stood for and sang, although HM the Queen did not grace us with her presence on this occasion.

Then followed Crown Imperial by Walton (written for the coronation in 1937), Walk to the Paradise Garden (Delius, 1901), Zadok the Priest (Handel, 1727), and the Cathcart Concertino for Percussion (world premiere, by Paul Hart, 1998). That concertino was performed by the orchestra and undoubtedly the world’s greatest solo percussionist, Evelyn Glennie. She was brilliant! (See her website at http://www.evelyn.co.uk). She puts so much of herself into her music, she is so talented.

But she is also deaf. And for an encore she played a piece she wrote when she was 13 called Little Prayer, unaccompanied on the marimba.

Then we had the pleasure of Nimrod (Elgar, 1899), Pomp and Circumstance March No.1 (Land of Hope and Glory) (Elgar), Lawrence of Arabia (music from the film, by Maurice Jarre), Chariots of Fire (click for MIDI) (music from the film, by Vangelis, 1982), Pie Jesu — Requiem (Andrew Lloyd-Webber).

This was then followed by an enthralling musical display by the Band of Her Majesty’s Grenadier Guards, who marched around the arena; the trombone players mingled with the audience and one even took a sip of someone’s wine! For their last piece they were joined by a lone piper who played the bagpipes with such perfection.

Continuing with great British music, we were then treated to a Beatles medley, featuring much of the music of Paul McCartney and the late John Lennon. Then to round off the evening came the traditional Proms favourites, often featured at the Last Night of the Proms: Tom Bowling: Hornpipe (the one where the audience claps along but not always correctly, by Henry Wood), I Vow to Thee My Country (from Holst’s Jupiter, 1918), Jerusalem (Parry, 1916 — one of the greatest songs ever written — click for MIDI) and to finish off, Rule Britannia! (Arne, 1738).

All excellent music and certainly well worth going to see! We had several encores of Rule Britannia and Land of Hope and Glory. One cannot help but feel a great sense of pride at being British at such a concert. If the British have little else to be proud of, they can remember the great contribution British composers have made to the world of music.

If you ever come to London to see a concert, you would find it hard to beat the Cathcart Proms. Advance bookings can be made on +44 (0)1604 234488, or visit the Royal Albert Hall website (URL unknown, the old site vanished; if anyone knows the new site let me know please).

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