Bantock at the 2013 Proms

[Jimfin]

I quite agree, and choral works should get more prominence, especially now the Birmingham and Leeds festivals are no more. In the nineteenth century, there was a lot more chance to hear these things, and it encouraged them to be written

[petershott@btinternet.com]

Gareth's proposal of at least one Prom devoted to a large scale British choral work is so obviously right. It is so obviously right that no-one of sound mind could possibly deny it!

And of course, as Gareth says, a neglected work. That is essential to the idea. To mount such a work in an occasional, one-off, concert in the Albert Hall (or other appropriate venue) on a wet Tuesday night in February might produce difficulties in filling all seats. But people buy tickets for the Proms because it is the Proms, and I do believe they would continue to do so with enthusiasm even if the work in question was an unfamiliar one. Being a Prom there is also a near guarantee that the work would be a rewarding one and the performance would be of a high standard.

And what would happen then? There's a fair chance that people would fall over backwards in surprise, would exclaim 'How glad I am that I've heard it', 'Why on earth hasn't this been heard for decades?', and even congratulate themselves that they had the sense to have bought a ticket and had been in the audience on this celebrated occasion.

Not a fantasy, surely? But all dependent on the BBC and the Prom planners to exercise some imagination and take a risk.

[eschiss1]

well, as we aren't discussing silence, we're all of sound mind. (HUSH, Eric. ... *retreats*)

[petershott@btinternet.com]

Thank you for your advice, Jolly Roger!

[Gauk]

There are other ways also in which neglected repertoire could be brought to the fore without scaring off audiences; the problem is that most people in the concert world don't seem to care.

[semloh]

For anyone not au fait with the UK's "Proms", they comprise a vast series of concerts, workshops, etc., lasting from July 12 to Sept. 7, and the programme can be found at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/whats-on/2013/print-season

Wagner gets by far the biggest slice of the cake, whereas the Bantock components amount to roughly one hour:

Sapphic Poem (15 mins)
Pierrot of the Minute (12 mins)
Celtic Symphony (20 mins)
The Witch of Atlas (15 mins)
Sea Reivers (4 mins)

..... hardly time for the Rhinemaidens to get warmed up!

I can't understand why an amazing work like Omar Khayyam (I am with you on that Gareth) has to give way to hours and hours of Teutonic breastbeating! Maybe I need to acquaint myself with the rationale of the Proms....  my personal view is that they should focus on British composers and performers, not to the exclusion of others, but that's where the main attention should be. It seems the organisers have a quite different view, bearing in mind that the exceedingly generous helpings of Britten would not normally be included.
Although Britain may no longer be regarded internationally as "a land without music", little is done to showcase its achievements and sadly I think it remains on the margins. The Proms are the best opportunity to change that. 

[Gareth Vaughan]

I heartily agree. One could not imagine French composers being so comprehensively sidelined in a music festival in France, for example.

[eschiss1]

I wouldn't know. I do gather that Canada has a tradition about representation of Canadian composers on music recordings.  Taken overall I find this a good idea.

I contradict myself, of course, since the one Prom I have ever attended had not one British work in the lot; it was Debussy La mer, Lili Boulanger (2 Psalms), Sibelius 2.  And very, very happy memories I have of it, too (I was curious about one of the Boulanger psalms after reading about it in Fanfare magazine, and was thrilled by the... anyways.)