Alec Evans takes a look at the pomp and ceremony to expect at the musical extravaganza that is this year’s Welsh Proms.
One of the highlights of Cardiff’s musical calendar, the Welsh Proms is back for 2017. A staple of the Welsh music scene since 1986, it provides the city with eight days of the highest standard of classical music in the surroundings of St David’s Hall.
The central focus of the Welsh Proms is approachability for people of all ages, even those who are less familiar with orchestral music. “My job is to present music and different programmes to people”, explains artistic director and conductor Owain Arwel Hughes CBE. “Once people come along and hear what a symphony orchestra does, they can see and hear so many things happening, with the combination of instruments that make the sounds.”
He points to concerts such as the opening night’s Classical Extravaganza, a collection of shorter orchestral favourites by composers such as Fauré and Verdi. “They’re very accessible works by great composers, it shows off all different styles of music and encapsulates what the Welsh Proms has been about over all the years.”
An ever-changing phenomenon, we can expect a number of things from the 2017 season that we haven’t seen at the festival in the past. The Welsh Proms always commemorates important anniversaries, and this year it’s the turn of film composer John Williams, whose 85th birthday year is celebrated with a Night at the Movies concert, featuring his works ranging from Schindler’s List to Star Wars.
It’s also Classic FM’s 25th birthday, with a celebration of works from young composers. This means we can expect to hear some Oliver Muxworthy alongside symphonic masterpieces by Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky. Hughes is a strong believer that the festival, which has previously featured commissions by Welsh composers like Matthias and Hoddinott, has an important role to play in providing a platform for composers who are less well known. “Paul Mealor at the moment has written a couple of works for me, and really is one of the outstanding Welsh composers that’s emerging.” The Welsh Proms has a history of premiering pieces that commemorate anniversaries themselves. Just last year saw the premieres of Christopher Wood’s Aberfan, a piece written for the 50th anniversary of the 1966 Aberfan tragedy, and Bernard Kane Jr’s Mr Dahl, a work for Roald Dahl’s centenary. Hughes says, “Works aren’t usually done in isolation, there’s a reason for them and the public enjoy that.”
Also expect a strong set of performers, be that some of the UK’s very best orchestras like The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Welsh National Opera Orchestra, soloists including pianist John Lill and euphonium player David Childs, or The Cory Band and Massed Male Choir, all under the baton of Owain Arwel Hughes. The festival is also nothing if not varied; outside of traditional classical proceedings, there’s a folk prom, a jazz prom and regular tiddly proms, the latter a fringe event focused particularly on young children. Engaging the younger generations, Hughes believes, is a key part of the future of music. He reminisces, “I remember one young girl tugging at my leg and handing me a sweet at an early family prom. That girl grew up, came to the Proms, and is now married and bringing her own kids. That’s what it’s all about as far as I’m concerned.”
The week closes with The Last Night of the Welsh Proms, a Royal Philharmonic Orchestra grand finale with a Welsh spin on its BBC Proms counterpart; Gareth Wood’s Songs of Wales sit side-by-side with works like Elgar’s Pomp & Circumstance. Despite some similarities to the BBC Proms, Hughes reinforces that the Welsh Proms are a different thing altogether, an almost entirely self-funded project in contrast to the BBC-sponsored nature of the London counterpart.
For anyone unable to make it to Cardiff, you can hear the Welsh Proms broadcast on Classic FM. As anyone who has experienced a St David’s Hall concert can agree on though, there’s nothing quite like being there in person.
The Welsh Proms, St David’s Hall, Cardiff, Sat 22-Sat 29 July. £7.50-£32. Info: 029 2087 8444 / www.welshproms.com