Welcome
It’s a testament to the power of music, the draw of the 6,000-seater Royal Albert
Hall and the party atmosphere that seems to exist at even the more serious concerts, that the BBC Proms have inspired remarkable loyalty from hundreds of people over the years. And I’m not just talking about the Prommers, whose collective chants can be heard during each concert announcing the total amount raised so far for charity. This month, we’ve tracked down some die-hards, the people without whom the Proms simply wouldn’t happen (or at the very least, wouldn’t be heard or seen on the airwaves). Our hardiest Prom faithful? Cellist Graham Bradshaw, who’s been playing with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the Proms for 40 years, followed soon after by official Proms photographer Chris Christodoulou (first Prom: 1981) whose photographs of the season must now number into the millions and whose portraits you’ll have seen in this magazine. My first Prom was at 17, back in 1992, when I saw Lars Vogt play Grieg’s Piano Concerto. I remember bumping into a one James Naughtie, then presenter of the Proms for BBC TV. I asked him for his autograph. ‘Why me?’, he wrote, in big scrawling letters. I’ve been chuckling about it on and off for years.
I do hope you’re able to enjoy some of this year’s
Proms, either at the Albert Hall itself or on BBC Radio 3.