BBC Proms 2007

New music

The BBC Proms maintains its long tradition of commissioning and performing new music with the premieres of 12 specially commissioned works for the 2007 season. From a dramatic musical piece about climate change by a leading film composer, to new symphonies and concertos by the likes of John Adams and Esa-Pekka Salonen, the BBC Proms present new work by top British and international talent.

 

There are a further seven major works receiving world, UK or London premieres and more than 70 works new to the Proms.

 

• Twelve BBC commissions and co-commissions from John Adams, Richard Rodney Bennett, Judith Bingham, Sir Harrison Birtwistle, Brett Dean, Sam Hayden, Aaron Jay Kernis, Rachel Portman, Guto Puw,Thea Musgrave, Esa- Pekka Salonen and Peter Wiegold.

 

• Oscar-winning composer Rachel Portman and poet/novelist Owen Sheers create a 'dramatic musical piece' to be performed by hundreds of children, some of whom are cast through a nationwide BBC talent search (27 August).

 

• Contemporary subjects for John Adams (nuclear bombs; 21 August), Brett Dean (miseries of reality TV; 22 July), and Rachel Portman (climate change; 27 August)

 

• Peter Wiegold creates a huge new piece for hundreds of amateur and professional brass players as centrepiece of Brass Day (28 July).

 

• John Adams, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Peter Wiegold and Benjamin Yusupov conduct their own works (21 August, 30 July, 28 July, 18 August).

 

• World premiere of David Matthews’s Symphony No. 6 (commissioned by the John S. Cohen Foundation, 2 August).

 

• UK premieres for living composers including Elliott Carter, Hans Werner Henze, Aaron Jay Kernis and Benjamin Yusupov.

 

• Maxim Vengerov dances tango in UK premiere of viola concerto by Yusupov (18 August).

 

• UK premiere of newly orchestrated song by Alban Berg from Renée Fleming (6 August).

 

• Two Composer Portraits featuring chamber music by Thomas Adès (20 August) and David Matthews (2 August).

 

• Major works by more than 30 living composers.

 

• More than 70 works new to the Proms (see asterixed entries in the BBC Proms Guide’s Index of Works, page 156, for details).

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