Bristol Beacon announced as a host venue for the world’s greatest classical music festival

The South West’s newly transformed and reopened concert hall, Bristol Beacon, has been announced as the region’s first ever host of full-scale orchestral concerts at the world-renowned BBC Proms.

Part of the recently introduced Proms Across the UK, Proms Bristol will see four concerts taking place over the August bank holiday weekend:

• The Virtuous Circle – Paraorchestra recast the traditional orchestral concert as an immersive experience, performing Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 from memory and on the move. Audiences are invited into the heart of the action to observe the perfect symbiosis of an orchestra, exploring the idea of the orchestra as the perfect embodiment of teamwork. Interspersed with new music from Ivor Novello Award-winner Oliver Vibrans, this world premiere is co-directed by Charles Hazlewood and Kyla Goodey with choreography by Tom Jackson Greaves. (Sat 24 Aug)

• BBC Singers at 100 – Celebrating 100 years since its formation, the BBC Singers performs a selection of a cappella masterpieces including Tavener’s Song for Athene and Britten’s A Shepherd’s Carol, led by Chief Conductor Sofi Jeannin. (Sun 25 Aug)

• Evelyn Glennie plays Jennifer Higdon – Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and its Chief Conductor Kirill Karabits perform Tchaikovsky’s heart-on-sleeve Symphony No. 5, alongside Jennifer Higdon’s flamboyant Percussion Concerto with soloist Evelyn Glennie (Sun 25 Aug)

• CBeebies Prom: Ocean Adventure – Kwamé Ryan, the Southbank Sinfonia and Andy Day come together for a fun-filled CBeebies musical ocean adventure for all the family (Mon 26 Aug)

The CBeebies Prom will also see additional activity from the Beacon’s family friendly Hoo Ha festival bringing a range of free musical activities and experiences for children and their families to enjoy.

Todd Wills, artistic director at Bristol Beacon, says: “Being able to play host to the iconic BBC Proms is an enormous honour for us. Our beautifully transformed auditorium now offers some of the best acoustics of any venue in the UK, so to be able to use it for the greatest classical music festival in the world is an absolute dream come true.

“Part of our mission in our building’s once-in-a-generation transformation was to be able to offer an expanded orchestral programme, which is something we know our audiences want – we’ve seen unprecedented demand with sold out performances for our last three orchestral concerts.

“We are also determined to make our programme affordable and accessible for as many people as possible. The Proms brings with it fantastic exposure and focus to encourage people who might be new to going to live orchestral concerts, and the £8 ‘Promming’ tickets mean that price isn’t a barrier for people wanting to attend.

“The Proms was established well over a hundred years ago with the aim of making the best of classical music affordable to more people by replacing the priciest seats in the stalls with standing promenade tickets, hence the name.

“The Bristol Proms offers four very different concerts that will appeal to broad and diverse audiences. We can’t wait to see our auditorium filled with world-leading musicians and rapturous audiences from all across the South West. If you’ve never experienced an orchestral concert before, now’s your opportunity. It’s something you will remember for a long time.”

Jonathan Harper, Chief Executive at Paraorchestra says: "We're thrilled to be combining the world premiere of The Virtuous Circle with our debut at the BBC Proms. It is extra special that we have the opportunity to first showcase this concert in our home city and utilise the new technical flexibility available at our partner venue Bristol Beacon.

“This important milestone for Paraorchestra builds on our reputation for creating ambitious new work that combines innovative approaches to live performance and the audience experience. It will be a highlight in an exciting year for Paraorchestra. We are grateful to the BBC Proms and to Bristol Beacon, and to funding partners including Arts Council England and Bristol City Council, all of whom are supporting ground-breaking orchestral music of the highest calibre."

Sofi Jeannin, Chief Conductor of the BBC Singers, said: “The BBC Singers are thrilled to be performing at Proms Bristol as part of our 100^th-anniversary year of celebrations. Audiences can look forward to a broad range of repertoire, from Britten’s A Shepherd’s Carol, first heard on the BBC in 1944, to brand a new commission from Asteryth Sloane. For those who can’t join us in the Hall at Bristol Beacon, every note will be broadcast on Radio 3 and BBC Sounds”.

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra's chief executive, Dougie Scarfe OBE DL, said: "We're thrilled to be part of the BBC Proms series at Bristol Beacon - what a way to conclude an extraordinary first year as Orchestra in Residence at this magnificent venue! The event also provides a final opportunity for local audiences to celebrate Kirill Karabits' remarkable tenure before he steps down as Chief Conductor this summer. The discovery of Feodor Akimenko's music has delighted BSO audiences in recent years, and we'll share his hauntingly beautiful Poem-Nocturne alongside powerful works by Niloufar Nourbakhsh and Jennifer Higdon, whose Percussion Concerto features the incomparable Dame Evelyn Glennie. We look forward to seeing you there for what promises to be a fantastic series this summer."

The BBC Proms was established in 1895 by founder-conductor Henry Wood with an aim to bring the best in classical music to the widest possible audience, which remains the aim today. The concerts offer something for everyone over an eight-week period, with 90 concerts – 73 at the Royal Albert Hall and 17 at venues across the UK. The Proms has always showcased new music, and this year includes 24 premieres and BBC commissions / co-commissions.

The 2024 BBC Proms will run from Friday 19 July to Saturday 14 September. For those unable to get tickets to experience the concerts live,  every note will be broadcast on Radio 3and BBC Sounds, and  24 programmes will be available to watch on TV and BBC iplayer. 

The concerts will be open for booking on Saturday 18 May. For more information or to book Proms Bristol tickets, visit https://bristolbeacon.org/whats-on/bbc-proms-2024/.