The BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall enters its final week with a series of high-profile performances and notable guest artists. The festival, now in its eighth week, features an array of symphonies and compositions led by acclaimed conductors and ensembles.
On Monday evening, conductor Simon Rattle returns to the festival with an all-Robert Schumann programme, accompanied by the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra. Violinist Isabelle Faust joins the performance as the soloist in Schumann’s Violin Concerto, adding to the evening’s celebrated lineup.
Tuesday’s concert, led by Ryan Wigglesworth, celebrates the 90th anniversary of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. The programme centers on Rachmaninov’s Symphony No. 3, noted for its romantic and lyrical qualities, accompanied by Bartók’s Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta. The latter piece is distinguished by its spatial orchestration, placing two ensembles on opposite sides of the stage. The programme concludes with a work by Edgard Varèse.
Thursday’s featured performance presents a rendition of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Mass in B minor under the direction of Jonathan Cohen and his ensemble Arcangelo. This sacred work will feature an ensemble of soloists, including sopranos Jeanine De Bique and Eva Zaïcik, counter-tenor Hugh Cutting, tenor Nick Pritchard, and bass-baritone Florian Störtz.
Friday marks the Proms debut for the Mahler Academy Orchestra, a group composed of musicians from across Europe, conducting Mahler’s Ninth Symphony. Philipp von Steinaecker leads the orchestra in this emotionally charged and monumental work, which lasts nearly an hour and a half and was Mahler’s final completed symphony.
The festival culminates on Saturday with the traditional Last Night of the Proms. Hosted by conductor Sakari Oramo in his seventh appearance for the event, the evening features pianist Yuja Wang and Scottish tenor Nicky Spence, alongside the BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Chorus, and BBC Symphony Orchestra. The programme is expected to include well-known patriotic favourites such as Elgar’s Land of Hope and Glory, Parry’s Jerusalem, Wood’s Fantasia on British Sea Songs, and Arne’s Rule! Britannia. The event will be broadcast live across BBC television channels and radio, with availability on digital platforms including BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds.