Promming

BBC Proms has been going on since the 18th of July, and I thought it time I went. What is Proms? According to the tagline, "The World's Greatest Classical Music Festival".

Luckily, a friend from my time in Moscow, Laura, was able to join me.

Proms is known for it's casual agenda; each performance in Royal Albert Hall saves at least 500 standing seats for to sell the day of the performance. If you're suddenly overcome with the desire to listen to classical music, simply queue for a standing ticket at the last minute and listen to some top notch musicians for just 5 pounds. Queue we did, three times in fact, and eventually got two of the last tickets for last night's sold out performance.

If you want to properly "prom" at Prom, you must get a standing ticket. We prommed for over two hours, which I think was plenty to get the full promming experience.




Last night featured the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, playing pieces by Magnus Lindberg, Rachmaninov, and Sibelius.

My knowledge of classical music is pitiful at best, but my knowledge of Russian culture is decent. So although we didn't have a program, Laura and I instantly knew the Rachmaninov. It sounded Russian. It was Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor.

I'm considering going back this week and getting a cheap seat at the top of the venue; another Russian masterpiece, Stravinsky's "The Firebird", is this Friday.