The Royal Albert Hall witnessed a Proms concert that epitomized the festival's finest qualities, with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra under Gianandrea Noseda delivering a programme that seamlessly bridged musical eras. The evening featured Bach's Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, the UK premiere of Jessie Montgomery's cello concerto 'These Righteous Paths', and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.
Bach with a Twist: Andrew Davis's Arrangement
The concert opened with Bach's Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, arranged for orchestra by Andrew Davis. The performance, described as having a 'twinkle in its eye', saw the strings initially offering dutiful exegesis before the winds took a sudden sideways turn, distorting the theme. A celesta doubling the flute added a shimmering ghost-like quality, a playful nod to the original organ work. The orchestra relished this fusion of sonic worlds under Noseda's baton.
Jessie Montgomery's 'These Righteous Paths': A Cello Concerto Born Through Abel Selaocoe
The centrepiece was the UK premiere of Jessie Montgomery's 'These Righteous Paths', a cello concerto 'born through' its soloist Abel Selaocoe. Montgomery, a composer and violinist, crafted the work as a tribute to her mother, playwright Robbie McCauley. Each of the three movements takes one of McCauley's poems as its starting point. Selaocoe's performance transcended traditional instrumental and vocal roles, incorporating wordless vocalise, mouth percussion, throat singing, and African song. According to the composer, the concerto was 'enabled and inspired' by Selaocoe's unique skills. The work nods to Bach and Elgar but stands as its own creation—an iridescent fabric woven between orchestra and soloist, daring to imagine McCauley's 'new song about something more'. Selaocoe was described as a 'mesmerising shaman' at its centre.
Beethoven's Ninth: A Call for Unity and Progress
The concert concluded with Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, deliberately classical and fleet-footed under Noseda. The performance chased the original shock of the extraordinary chorale finale, delivered by a strong quartet of soloists and the Philharmonia Chorus. The programme note referenced Schiller's ode to fellowship and unity, coinciding with Andy Burnham's appointment as prime minister. The performance was an argument for peace, progress, risk-taking, and visionary optimism.
Impact and Availability
The concert, which took place at the Royal Albert Hall, is available on BBC Sounds until 12 October. The Proms continue until 12 September. The programme, which looked strange on paper, made perfect sense in the hall, holding musical past and future suspended together in a rapt continuous present.
