The Proms The Proms 2008/9 Schools Wikipedia Selection . Related subjects: Musical genres, styles, eras and events A Promenade concert in the Royal Albert Hall, 2004. The bust of Henry Wood can be seen in front of the organ The Proms (also more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC) is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in South Kensington, London , United Kingdom . Founded in 1895, each season now consists of over 70 concerts in the Albert Hall, a series of eight chamber concerts and four Saturday Matinees at Cadogan Hall, additional Proms in the Park events across the United Kingdom on the Last Night and associated educational and children's events. It is the biggest classical music festival in the world. Proms is short for promenade concerts. The term promenade concert arose from the original practice of audience members promenading, or strolling, in some areas of the concert hall during the concert.

Promming now refers to the use of the standing areas inside the hall (the arena and gallery) for which ticket prices are much lower than for the reserved seating. Single concert promming tickets can be purchased, with few exceptions, only on the day of the concert, which can give rise to long queues for well-known artists or works. Prommers can purchase full or half season tickets instead for guaranteed entry, although not guaranteed standing position. A number of Prommers are particularly keen in their attendance, and see it as a badge of honour to achieve the "Grand Slam" of attending every concert of the season. In 1997 one programme in the BBC documentary series "Modern Times" covered this dedicated following. History Although earlier promenade concert series had previously existed, the first Proms concert was held on 10 August 1895 in the Queen's Hall in Langham Place and was arranged by Robert Newman. Newman's idea was to encourage an audience who, though not normally attending classical concerts, would be attracted by the low ticket prices and more informal atmosphere (in addition to promenading, eating, drinking and smoking were all allowed). However, it is the conductor Henry Joseph Wood whose name is most closely associated with the concerts.

As conductor from that first concert, Wood was largely responsible for expanding the repertoire heard in later concerts, such that by the 1920s the concerts had grown from being made up of largely more popular, less demanding works, to presenting music by contemporary composers such as Claude Debussy, Richard Strauss and Ralph Vaughan Williams . A bronze bust of Wood, belonging to the Royal Academy of Music, is placed in front of the Organ for the whole season. While now known as BBC Proms, the text on the tickets (along with the headline BBC Proms next to the BBC Logo), still says BBC Music presents the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts. In 1927, the BBC — later based at Broadcasting House opposite the hall — took over the running of the concerts, and when the BBC Symphony Orchestra was formed in 1930 it became the main orchestra for the concerts. At this time the season consisted of nights dedicated to particular composers; Mondays were Wagner , Fridays were Beethoven with other major composers being featured on other days. There were no Sunday performances. However, with the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the BBC withdrew its support.

The Proms continued though, under private sponsorship, until the Queen's Hall was gutted by an air raid in 1941 (its site is now the St George's Hotel and BBC Henry Wood House). The following year, the Proms moved to their current home, the Royal Albert Hall, and the BBC took over once more. In 1944 however increased danger to the Royal Albert Hall from bombing meant that the Proms moved again to the Bedford Corn Exchange. This venue had been the home of the BBC Symphony Orchestra since 1941 and played host to the Proms until the end of the war. From the 1950s, the number of guest orchestras giving concerts in the season began to increase, with the first major international conductors ( Leopold Stokowski, Georg Solti and Carlo Maria Giulini) performing in 1963, and the first foreign orchestra, the Moscow Radio Orchestra, performing in 1966. Since that time, almost every major international orchestra, conductor and soloist has performed at the Proms. In 1970, Soft Machine's appearance led to press attention and comment as the first "pop" band to perform there.

The other major conductor associated with the Proms was Sir Malcolm Sargent who was Chief Conductor between 1948 to 1966. He was noted for his immaculate appearance (evening dress, carnation) and his witty addresses where he good-naturedly chided the noisy prommers. Sir Malcolm championed choral music, classical and British composers especially the brilliant black composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. The charity founded in his name continues to hold a special 'Promenade Concert' each year shortly after the main season ends. The charity also benefits (along with the Musicians' Benevolent Fund and a third "musical" charity, chosen each year) by many thousands of pounds from a collection made by the prommers after most concerts. (The Malcolm Sargent Cancer Fund for Children merged with CLIC in early 2005 forming CLIC - Sargent). The Proms continue today, and still present newly commissioned music alongside pieces more central to the repertoire and early music. Innovations continue, with pre-Prom talks, lunchtime chamber concerts, children's Proms, Proms in the Park either appearing, or being featured more heavily over the past few years.

In the UK , all concerts are broadcast on BBC Radio 3, an increasing number are shown on BBC4 with some also broadcast on BBC1 and BBC2. It is also possible to hear the concerts live from the BBC Proms website. The Last Night is also broadcast in many countries around the world. In 1996 a related series of eight lunchtime chamber concerts was started, taking place on Mondays during the Proms season. In their first year these were held in the Britten Hall of the Royal College of Music (just across Prince Consort Road from the Albert Hall). The following year they moved slightly further afield, to the Henry Cole Lecture Theatre at the V & A. In 2005 they moved further again, to the new Cadogan Hall, just off London's Sloane Square. These allow the Proms to include music which is not really suitable for the vast spaces of the Albert Hall. Since 1998, the Blue Peter Prom, in partnership with long-running BBC television programme Blue Peter , has been an annual fixture. Aimed at children and families, the Prom is informal, including audience participation, jokes, and popular classics.

High demand for tickets - which are among the lowest priced in the season - saw this Prom be split in 2004 into 2 Proms with identical content. The 2004 season also featured the Hall's newly rebuilt pipe organ, now again the largest in the British Isles. It took two years to complete the task (2002–2004) and was the work of Noel Mander, Ltd., of London. It was the first complete restoration of the instrument since Harrison and Harrison's work in 1936. The Proms today The Proms 2005. Most people sit, while Promenaders stand in front of the orchestra. The Royal Albert Hall Organ is in the background. 2008 season The 2008 season will run from 18 July- 13 September 2008. The BBC has indicated that it will release details of the season as usual during April 2008.

2007 season The 2007 season ran from 13 July– 8 September 2007, with the first concert beginning with Walton's Portsmouth Point and included Elgar's Cello Concerto performed by Paul Watkins and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. Following the previous year's Voice day, brass instruments were specially featured with two concerts on 28 July 2007. Early press coverage focused heavily on the fact that musical theatre star Michael Ball would be the central performer in a concert on 27 August and a concert of British film music on 14 July. This led to media accusations of " dumbing down", despite Nicholas Kenyon's defence of the programme. Anniversaries marked in this Proms season included the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sir Edward Elgar , the 100th anniversary of the death of Edvard Grieg and the 50th anniversary of the death of Jean Sibelius as well as marking 80 years since the first BBC sponsorship of the Proms.

In February 2007 it was announced that the 2007 season would be Nicholas Kenyon's last as controller of the BBC Proms as he would take up the position of Managing Director at the Barbican Centre from October 2007. He will be succeeded by Roger Wright who will also retain responsibility for BBC Radio 3 and take up a broader role controlling the BBC 's classical music output across all media. 2006 season Details of the 2006 season (the 112th) were announced on 27 April 2006. As expected they marked the 250th birthday celebrations of Mozart and the centenary of Shostakovich's birth. New initiatives for the year included four Saturday matinee concerts at the Cadogan Hall and the chance for audience members to get involved with The Voice, a collaborative piece performed in two Proms on 29 July. On 3 September 2006, a concert was cancelled due to a fire which damaged the hall's electrical system. Last Night of the Proms Most people's perception of the Proms is taken from the 'Last Night', although this concert is very different from the others.

In the UK, it is usually broadcast on BBC2 (first half) and BBC1 (second half) and usually takes place on the second Saturday in September. The concert is traditionally in a lighter, 'winding-down' vein, with popular classics being followed by a series of British patriotic pieces in the second half of the concert. This sequence begins with Edward Elgar 's Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 ( Land of Hope and Glory ), and continues with Sir Henry Wood's Fantasia on British Sea Songs which culminates in Thomas Arne’s Rule Britannia. The concert concludes with Hubert Parry's Jerusalem (a setting of a poem by William Blake ), and the British national anthem. The Prommers have made a recent tradition of singing Auld Lang Syne but it is not in the programme. Tickets are highly sought after. Promming tickets are no more expensive than for other concerts throughout the season, but tickets for seats are more expensive. It is usually necessary to attend several other Proms in the season to have a chance of getting a Last Night ticket.

In the post-War period, with the growing popularity of the "Last Night", the only way to obtain tickets was through a postal ballot system where prospective buyers submitted an application well in advance, along with a stamped and addressed reply envelope. The lucky ones received their tickets by return. Prommers with tickets are likely to queue up much earlier than usual (even overnight) in order to ensure a good place to stand in the hall. The resulting cameraderie adds to the atmosphere. Fancy dress is an optional extra: from dinner jackets to patriotic T-shirts. Many use the occasion for an exuberant display of Britishness. Union Flags are carried and waved by the Prommers, especially during Rule Britannia. Flags (mostly national flags and regional flags), balloons and party poppers are all welcome. Sir Henry Wood's bust is crowned with a laurel chaplet by representatives of the Promenaders, who often wipe an imaginary bead of sweat from his forehead or make some similar gentle visual joke. Near the end, the conductor makes a speech thanking the musicians and audiences, and mentioning the main themes covered through the season. The Royal Albert Hall could be filled many times over with people wishing to attend the Last Night.

To accommodate these people, and to cater for those who are not near London, the Proms in the Park concerts were started in 1996. Initially there was only one, in London 's Hyde Park adjacent to the Hall. More locations have been added in recent years, and in 2005, Belfast , Glasgow , Swansea and Manchester hosted a Last Night Prom in the Park which was broadcast live from each venue. 2007 saw Manchester's prom being replaced by one in Middlesbrough. Each location has its own live concert, typically playing the country's respective national anthems, before joining in a live big screen video link up with the Royal Albert Hall for the traditional finalé. Leonard Slatkin, chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra until recently, expressed a desire to tone down the nationalism of the Last Night somewhat, and since 2002 Rule Britannia has only been heard as part of Henry Wood's Fantasia on British Sea Songs (another piece traditional to the last night) rather than separately. Slatkin's first Last Night was in 2001, just days after 9/11 attacks : it was more restrained than normal.

He was the first non- Commonwealth citizen to conduct the final night. A heavily revised programme saw Beethoven's 9th replacing the Sea Songs etc and also included Samuel Barber's melancholy Adagio for Strings. Last Night Conductors The following table lists by year the people who have acted as conductor at the Last Night of the Proms. This duty is normally undertaken by the Principal Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, but the role has on occasion been undertaken by a number of guest conductors. Where appropriate, the table indicates such guest status. Year Henry Wood Facts for Kids | KidzSearch.com 2 Other websites His life Henry Wood was born in London . His father was an optician , but had become well known for making model trains . He sold them in his shop in Oxford Street in London. His parents liked music. They both sang and his father played the cello . Although Henry heard a lot of music around him he did not have proper music lessons until he was already quite old. When he was 14 he learned to play the organ . He also played the piano and violin . When he was 16 he went to the Royal Academy of Music where he had lessons in piano, organ, composition and singing .

He wanted to become a singing teacher, and he did in fact give singing lessons all his life. He became good at the piano so that he could accompany singers. When he left the Royal Academy of Music he found work as a singing teacher and as a conductor of choirs and orchestras . He wrote a small book called The Gentle Art of Singing. Promenade Concerts In 1893 a man called Robert Newman , who was manager of the Queen's Hall , had an idea. He wanted to organize a series of concerts in which the audience could walk about and listen to music. He wanted to call them "Promenade Concerts" (the word comes from the French "se promener" = "to walk"). There were already promenade concerts in the parks in London, but those Promenade concerts were just for music that was easy to listen to. Newman wanted people to get to know good classical music . He wanted the tickets to be cheap so that people who were not rich would be able to afford to go. Newman thought that Henry Wood was a good conductor and asked him to conduct these concerts. The first series of Promenade Concerts (or "Proms" for short) was in 1895 .

The programmes were much longer than they are in concerts today. There were lots of short pieces of music. Wood gradually made his audiences get used to listening to longer pieces of music. He introduced them to new music which had only recently been written. He conducted music by many British composers and European composers. People at that time were very prejudiced . They thought that only German conductors knew how to conduct German composers such as Richard Wagner . Wood showed them that he could do it too. He conducted every night during the Proms season. On Mondays he played a lot of Wagner and on Fridays he played Beethoven . He played music by European composers whose music was not yet well known in England, e.g. Sibelius , Schoenberg and many Russian composers. Wood conducted the Proms until his death in 1944 . Most of that time he was the only conductor of the Proms. Later in life he shared the conducting with other conductors such as Basil Cameron and Sir Adrian Boult . Wood had a big influence on the standard of music making in England. He made orchestral playing better, making sure that the players did not send in deputies instead of them.

He made sure that the orchestral players were paid well and he allowed women to play in the orchestra. Other musical activities Wood is mainly remembered for the promenade concerts, but he conducted many other groups as well. He travelled around England, conducting at music festivals. He often conducted amateur groups. He made sure that he knew the music he was conducting very well. Many conductors in the 19th century did not do this. They were more keen to show off, but Wood prepared the music carefully, marking things in his score with coloured pencils. Wood made arrangements of other composer's music, e.g. Bach 's Toccata and Fugue in D minor for organ. He arranged a group of songs called Fantasia on British Sea Songs for the 1905 centenary celebrations of the Battle of Trafalgar . These are always played at the Last Night of the Proms . In 1938 he conducted a jubilee concert in the Royal Albert Hall . Rachmaninov was the soloist, and Vaughan Williams wrote his Serenade to Music for orchestra and sixteen soloists. Wood often worked too hard and it was not good for his health.

He died on 19 August 1944 , just over a week after the fiftieth anniversary concert of the Proms, which he had been too ill even to listen to on the radio. Wood was given many honours: he was knighted by the king in 1911, he was awarded the gold medal of the Royal Philharmonic Society in 1921 and was made a Companion of Honour in 1944. At the Proms today his bust is put at the front of the Royal Albert Hall during the whole of each Prom season. At the Last Night of the Proms it is decorated by a chaplet . Other websites Henry J. Wood (Conductor, Arranger) - Short Biography Henry J. Wood (Conductor, Arranger) Born: March 3, 1869 - London, England Died: August 19, 1944 - Hitchin, Hetrfordshire, England The English conductor and arranger, Sir Henry J(oseph) Wood, was born in London. His father was a qualified optician, but had become well-known as a craftsman and model maker, running a highly successful model engine shop in Oxford Street.

Both parents were keen amateur musicians: his father sang in church choirs and played the cello and his mother sang songs from her native Wales. He was taught to play the piano by his mother, and participated in family musicales from the age of 6. He was equally precious on the organ, and at age 10 was often deputy organist of St Mary Aldermanbury. At the age of 14, he played the organ at the 'Musicians' Church' St Sepulchre-without-Newgate, the largest parish church in the City of London, where his ashes now rest. He also gave organ recitals at the Fisheries Exhibition (1883) and at the Inventions Exhibition (1885). He also learned the violin, but it was not until he entered the Royal Academy of Music at the age of 16 (1886) that he received methodical tuition. During his two years at the RAM he took classes in piano, organ, composition and singing. His teachers included Ebenezer Prout (composition), Manuel Garcia (singing), Steggall and Macfarren. He won 4 medals.

His ambition at the time was to become a teacher of singing (and he gave singing lessons throughout his life), and so he attended classes of as many singing teachers as he could, both as pupil and as accompanist. In 1888 Henry Wood brought out some of his songs; them he composed light operas and cantatas. On leaving the Royal Academy of Music he found work as a singing teacher, but soon his ambition was crystallised in the direction of conducting. After making his debut in 1888, he began his activity as an orchestral and choral conductor. He gained experience by working for several opera companies, many of them obscure. He conducted the Carl Rosa Opera Company in 1891, and the following year the English premiere of Tchaikovskyן¿½s Eugene Onegin at the newly rebuilt Olympic Theatre. He collaborated with Arthur Sullivan on preparation of The Yeomen of the Guard and Ivanhoe. Meanwhile he was deriving a steady income from his singing tuition, and he published a manual The Gentle Art of Singing. In 1893, Robert Newman, manager of the Queen's Hall in London, proposed holding a series of promenade concerts with Henry Wood as conductor.

The term promenade concert normally referred to concerts in London parks where the audience could walk about as they listened (French se promener = to walk). Newmanן¿½s aim was to educate the musical taste of the public who were not used to listening to serious classical music unless it was presented in small doses with plenty of other popular items in between. Wood shared Newmanן¿½s ideals. Dr George Cathcart, a wealthy ear, nose and throat specialist, offered to sponsor the project on condition that Wood took charge of every concert. He also insisted that the pitch of the instruments, which in England was nearly a semitone higher than that used on the continent, should be brought down to diapason normal (A=435Hz). On August 10, 1895 the first of the Queenן¿½s Hall Promenade Concerts took place with an orchestra of about 80 members. It is particularly significant that Henry Wood should have chosen an overture by Wagner to open the first programme. Prejudice against British musicians was very strong.

19th century England had been labelled by the Germans Das Land ohne Musik (ן¿½The Land without Musicן¿½) and not without a certain amount of justification. Henry Wood was to alter all that. In particular, it was thought that no British conductor would be capable of conducting Wagner. Their success was so conspicuous that a new series of concerts was inaugurated on January 30, 1897, under Wood's direction, and flourished from the beginning. Wood was to prove otherwise. In fact, for many years the programming of the promenade concerts followed a particular pattern according to the day of the week, with Monday nights being Wagner nights and Friday being dedicated to L.v. Beethoven . Wood also bravely introduced British audiences to many noteworthy European composers, especially Sibelius and composers of the Russian school. In 1912 he conducted Arnold Schoenberg ן¿½s Five Orchestral Pieces (ן¿½Stick to it, gentlemenן¿½ he urged the orchestra at rehearsal, ן¿½This is nothing to what youן¿½ll have to play in 25 yearsן¿½ timeן¿½).

Henry Wood remained in sole charge of the Proms (with one or two exceptions) until 1941 when he shared the conducting with Basil Cameron and, in the following season, with Sir Adrian Boult as well. During Woodן¿½s time the Proms were a central feature of British musical life and he gained the nickname of "Timber" from the Promenaders. He brought about many innovations. He fought continuously for improved pay for musicians, and introduced women into the orchestra in 1911. In 1904, after a rehearsal in which he was faced with a sea of entirely unfamiliar faces in his own orchestra, he at one stroke abolished the deputy system in which players had been free to send in a deputy whenever they wished. Forty players resigned en bloc and formed their own orchestra: the London Symphony Orchestra . Henry Wood's fame lies mainly with the Promenade Concerts, but he was active in many areas of musical life. He conducted many concerts in London and the provinces, and appeared regularly at choral festivals in Norwich and Sheffield. In 1899 he founded the Nottingham Orchestra.

He was also conductor of the Wolverhampton Festival Choral Society (1900), the Sheffield Festival (1902-1911), and the Norwich Festival (1908). In 1904 he was a guest conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra . He conducted many amateur groups, and was very generous with the time he gave to the studentsן¿½ orchestra at the Royal Academy of Music. He was meticulous and thorough in his preparation, and built up a large library of scores, which were carefully marked up in coloured pencil. His famous medley Fantasia on British Sea Songs, prepared for the 1905 centenary celebrations of the Battle of Trafalgar, is now an indispensable item at the Last Night of the Proms. In 1898 Henry Wood married Princess Olga Ourousoff (Urusova), a Russian noblewoman, and became greatly interested in Russian music, which he performed frequently at his concerts. He adopted a Russian pseudonym, Paul Klenovsky, for his compositions and arrangements, and supplied an imaginary biography of his alter ego for use in programme notes.

Klenovsky was a real person, a recently deceased young musician friend of Alexander Glazunov's, and Wood thought a foreign name would secure a more favourable reception than his own. His wife died in 1909, and in 1911 Wood married Muriel Ellen Greatrex, with whom he had two daughters. In 1918 he was offered the conductorship of the Boston Symphony Orchestra as successor of Muck, but declined. In 1923 he was appointed professor of conducting and orchestral playing at the Royal Academy of Music in London. In 1938 he presented a jubilee concert in the Royal Albert Hall. Sergei Rachmaninov was the soloist, and for the occasion Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote his Serenade to Music for orchestra and sixteen soloists. He had an enormous influence on musical life in Britain: he improved access immensely, and also raised the standard of orchestral playing and nurtured the taste of the public, introducing them to a vast repertoire of music, encouraging especially compositions by British composers. In Arthur Jacobsן¿½ 1994 biography of Henry Wood, the list of premières conducted by Wood extends to 18 pages.

Among Henry Wood's popular arrangements were Frédéric Chopin 's Marche Funùbre, some works by J.S. Bach and the Trumpet Voluntary (mistakenly attributed to Purcell, but actually by Jeremiah Clarke). His orchestrations of other composers' works drew frequent criticisms, so when in 1929 he made an orchestral transcription of J.S. Bach 's Toccata & Fugue in D minor, he presented it as a transcription by Paul Klenovsky. It was a great success. Only several years later did he confess to the little joke. The work was nonetheless published in 1934 as "Bach-Klenovsky, Organ Toccata and Fugue in D minor, for Orchestra (orchestrated by Sir Henry J. Wood)". He published The Gentle Art of Singing (4 volumes; 1927-1928) and About Conducting (London, 1945), and edited the Handbook of Miniature Orchestral and Chamber Music Scores (1937). He wrote an autobiography, My Life and Music (London, 1938).

A number of honours were bestowed on Henry Wood: knighted by the King in 1911, he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Philharmonic Society in 1921 and was made a Companion of Honour in 1944. Henry Wood tended to overwork himself, and the strain began to tell in his later years. Wood continued to conduct the Promenade Concerts almost to the end of his life (for half a century!), presenting the last concert on July 28, 1944. He died on August 19, 1944, just over a week after the 50th anniversary concert of the Proms, which he had been too ill even to listen to on the radio. The poet laureate John Masefield composed a poem of six verses in his honour, entitled "Sir Henry Wood" but often referred to by its first line "Where does the uttered music go?". This was set to music as an anthem for mixed choir by Sir William Walton which received its first performance on April 26, 1946 at St.

Sepulchre's Church, Holborn, London, on the occasion of a ceremony unveiling a memorial stained-glass window in Sir Henry Wood's honour. The Promenade Concerts became known after his death as the ן¿½Henry Wood Promenade Concertsן¿½ (now the ן¿½BBC Promsן¿½). He is remembered today in the name of the Henry Wood Hall, the deconsecrated Holy Trinity Church in Southwark, which was converted to a rehearsal and recording venue in 1975. His bust stands upstage centre in the Royal Albert Hall during the whole of each Prom season, and is decorated by a chaplet on the Last Night of the Proms. A commemorative postage stamp with his portrait was issued by the Post Office of Great Britain on September 1, 1980. Source: Bakerן¿½s Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Classical Musicians (1997); Wikipedia Website Contributed by Aryeh Oron (June 2009) Henry J. Wood: My Life of Music (London: Gollancz, 1938) R. Newmarch: Henry J.

Wood (London, 1904) T. Russell et al. eds. Hommage to Sir Henry Wood: A Workd Symposium (London, 1944) W. Thompson et al.: Sir Henry Wood: Fift Years of the Proms (London, 1944) J. Wood: The Last Years of Henry J. Wood (London, 1954) R. Pound: Sir Henry Wood: A Biography (London, 1969) Ates Orga: The Proms (Newton Abbot, London: David & Charles, 1974) David Cox: The Henry Wood Proms (London: BBC, 1980) Stanley Sadie: "Sir Henry (Joseph) Wood", in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (London: Macmillan. vol. 20, 1980) D. Lambourn: "Henry Wood and Schoenberg", in Musical Times (August 1987) Arthur Jacobs: Henry J.

Wood: Maker of the Proms (London: Methuen, 1994) BBC - BBC Proms Facts - Media Centre BBC Proms Facts Category: Proms What is the BBC Proms? The BBC Proms is the world’s biggest and longest-running music festival and features many of the world’s greatest artists and orchestras. This year, over its two months, there are 76 concerts in the Royal Albert Hall and 12 in Cadogan Hall, as well as four Proms in the Park celebrations around the UK on the Last Night. There are also daily FREE Proms Plus talks, workshops, performances and family events. How can I find out what’s on when? The BBC Proms Guide 2012, available in bookshops, online and across the UK from 20 April, contains full details of the festival along with articles about the music and artists, priced £6.50. Full season details are also available at bbc.co.uk/proms from 2.00pm on 19 April. New for this season, BBC Proms 2012: Concerts and Events is available in an ebook format, from online retailers, priced £2.99.

Why is it called the ‘Proms’? ‘Proms’ is short for Promenade concerts, informal and inexpensive concerts where Promenaders (‘Prommers’) stand to listen. Promming tickets in 2012 are £5 for the seventh year running. The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts, now known as the BBC Proms, has up to 900 Prommers standing in the central Arena and a further 500 standing, sitting or even lying down in the Gallery. Where is the Proms held? Since the first home of the Proms, the Queen’s Hall, was destroyed in 1941, concerts have been held in the Royal Albert Hall, though the BBC has the responsibility of running the Proms and for its artistic programme. There are also events at Cadogan Hall and a daily programme of FREE Proms Plus events at the Royal College of Music. When did the Proms begin? Henry Wood, who conducted almost every concert for nearly half a century, lifted his baton for the first time on Saturday 10 August 1895.

Even then, Prom concerts were not a new idea: they started in France in the 1830s and were introduced to the UK shortly afterwards. Whose idea was it? The Proms was the brainchild of impresario Robert Newman, whose ambition was to enable people to enjoy ‘serious music’. Sir Henry Wood, founder-conductor of the Proms, believed in making the best-quality classical music available to the widest possible audience and that ambition remains central to the BBC Proms today. How many people attend the Proms? 2011 was a record-breaking season for the BBC Proms. Over 300,000 people attended Proms concerts, average attendance for the main evening Proms in the Royal Albert Hall was 94%, and 52 of 74 concerts in the Royal Albert Hall sold out. How can I access the Proms? Every Prom is broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 and in HD sound via the website at bbc.co.uk/radio3. They are also available to ‘listen again’ for seven days after broadcast at bbc.co.uk/proms. Selected Proms are televised on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four and BBC HD throughout the season.

Proms information can also be found via Facebook (facebook.com/theproms) and Twitter (@bbcproms / #bbcproms). How many people watch and listen to the Proms? In 2011 the BBC Proms reached a record 18.5 million viewers in the UK across all BBC television platforms. BBC Radio 3 reaches more than 2 million people each week and has a huge international reach through its broadcasts. How much do tickets cost? There are seven different price bands for concerts, ranging from £7.50 to £55 (excluding the Last Night). Arena and Gallery Promming tickets cost just £5 each. A Promming season ticket costs £190, bringing the cost of attending each concert down to £2.50. (Half-season tickets are also available at £110.) Also this year, for the first time, under-18s will be able to buy half-price tickets for all Proms, except the Last Night (previously, this offer has applied only to under-16s). How can I book tickets? Tickets go on sale at 9.00am on Saturday 12 May 2012.

The online Proms Planner at bbc.co.uk/proms enables you to plan your concert attendance across the season before tickets go on sale. This will be available from 2.00pm on Thursday 19 April until midnight on Friday 11 May. From 9.00am on 12 May customers can also phone 0845 401 5040* or buy tickets in person at the Royal Albert Hall. Who runs the Proms and how much does it cost? The Proms is entirely run and funded by the BBC through the licence fee. The total cost of the Proms season, including hire of the Royal Albert Hall, artistic costs, management and extra events, not including Proms in the Park, is around £9 million with an expected £3.5 million gained back through box office income. *Calls cost up to 5p/min from most landlines (an additional connection fee may also apply). Calls from mobiles may cost considerably more. All calls will be recorded and may be monitored for training and qualitycontrol purposes.

Search the site Monday Night at the Theater: London Does Broadway (BBC Proms featuring Sierra Boggess) Monday Night at the Theater: London Does Broadway (BBC Proms featuring Sierra Boggess) Monday Mar 24, 2014 · 5:00 PM PDT 2014/03/24 · 17:00 12 Boggess begins to sing at the 2:57 mark: The Proms, more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in London. Founded in 1895, each season currently consists of more than 70 concerts in the Albert Hall, a series of chamber concerts at Cadogan Hall, additional Proms in the Park events across the United Kingdom on the last night, and associated educational and children's events. In 2009 the total number of concerts reached 100 for the first time.

In the context of classical music festivals, Jiří Bělohlávek has described the Proms as "the world's largest and most democratic musical festival". The Proms seem to favor Sierra Boggess. Here's what I found: Sierra Boggess made her Broadway debut in The Little Mermaid, then returned to Broadway as an opera student in Master Class. She has played Andrew Lloyd Webber’s heroine Christine Daae in the Las Vegas and Broadway productions of The Phantom of the Opera and in the West End premiere of the hit musical’s sequel, Love Never Dies.

Question: In which year was the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts, otherwise known as The Proms, founded?
Answer: 1895