The lineup for the 2024 BBC Proms has been announced, with many of the world’s leading performers and orchestras visiting the UK between 19 July and 14 September for performances at the Royal Albert Hall and weekend festivals in Bristol, Nottingham and Gateshead.
Among the highlights, the Berlin Philharmonic under Kirill Petrenko performs two Proms, one with pianist Víkingur Ólafsson and another featuring a programme of music by Bruckner, marking the composer’s 200th anniversary. The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Sir Simon Rattle also performs two Proms, with music by Bruckner and Mahler.
Marking the Year of Czech Music, Jakub Hrůša conducts the Czech Philharmonic for two Proms of entirely Czech music. Marking their 25th anniversary, the West–Eastern Divan Orchestra returns to the BBC Proms under its co-founder Daniel Barenboim, with violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter.
Celebrating the best of British musicians and British creativity, the BBC’s own ensembles perform in a total of 38 Proms, while a further 20 orchestras and over 25 choirs from all over the UK perform throughout the season. Highlights include the First Night of the Proms with the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Elim Chan, featuring soloists Isata Kanneh-Mason and Sophie Bevan and the world premiere of Hallelujah Sim. by Ben Nobuto.
The BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Edwin Outwater celebrates the work of film composer Henry Mancini and the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Nicholas Collon performs the world premiere of Anna Clyne’s The Gorgeous Nothings. The BBC National Orchestra of Wales led by Ryan Bancroft performs a double bill of Schoenberg and Zemlinsky. And Ilan Volkov conducts the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra for the first UK performance of Mary Lou Williams’s Zodiac Suite alongside works by Duke Ellington and Anthony Braxton, with Braxton making his BBC Proms debut.
In the 100th anniversary year of the BBC Singers, the 2024 BBC Proms celebrates choral music and singing, with a special three-concert Choral Day reflecting a wide range of styles. The BBC Singers will perform in seven Proms this year, including both the First Night of the Proms and the Last Night of the Proms.
They will also feature in the Berlin Philharmonic’s Bruckner Prom and the world premiere of a piece specially written for them by Eric Whitacre. Further choral highlights across the summer include performances of Verdi’s Requiem, Britten’s War Requiem and Bach’s St John Passion.
More BBC Proms residencies launch across the UK, with a total of 17 Proms performed outside London. For the first time, a weekend-long BBC Proms festival launches at the newly opened Bristol Beacon. Paraorchestra makes their BBC Proms debut performing the world premiere of The Virtuous Circle, Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 interspersed with new work by Oliver Vibrans, co-commissioned by the BBC.
The BBC Proms returns to Gateshead for a weekend-long residency at the Glasshouse International Centre for Music, and a brand-new Proms residency launches in venues across Nottingham, building on the BBC Concert Orchestra’s ongoing residency in the area. Chamber concerts also take place in Aberdeen, Belfast and Newport.
The 2024 BBC Proms also continues with the growing tradition of orchestral collaborations with non-classical artists and tributes to different musical genres. Florence Welch, of indie-rock band Florence + The Machine, makes her BBC Proms debut (and only UK appearance this year) to perform her lauded BRIT Award-winning 2009 album Lungs, with Jules Buckley and his orchestra. Jordan Rakei makes his BBC Proms debut with Robert Ames and the Royal Northern Sinfonia at the Glasshouse International Centre for Music.
Academy Award-winning artist Sam Smith makes their BBC Proms debut at the Royal Albert Hall, their only live UK appearance this year, performing their own music in new orchestral arrangements. After the success of the 2023 Northern Soul Prom, this year’s opening weekend will feature the first ever Disco Prom, celebrating disco music of the late 1970s during the era of New York’s Studio 54.
Three Proms pay tribute to the work and legacies of iconic musicians: folk-rock artist Nick Drake, jazz singer Sarah Vaughan and film composer Henry Mancini, each of whom have significant anniversaries this year and whose Proms will feature exciting soloists. Tinariwen performs a Late Night Prom, featuring their pioneering mix of traditional Tuareg and African music with Western rock music.
Once again, every single concert at the 2024 BBC Proms will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3. Other BBC Radio networks, including Radio 1 and Radio 2, will broadcast highlights. This year, 24 concerts will be broadcast on TV and BBC iPlayer, from the First Night of the Proms, presented by Clive Myrie, right through to the world-famous Last Night of the Proms, presented by Katie Derham.
A roster of debut soloists includes pianist Yunchan Lim, cellist Anastasia Kobekina, clarinettist Anthony McGill and sopranos Latonia Moore and Angel Blue. Star soloists returning to the BBC Proms include Yo-Yo Ma with Leonidas Kavakos and Emanuel Ax, Jamie Barton, Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Patricia Kopatchinskaja and Víkingur Ólafsson.
The season culminates in the Last Night of the Proms with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and BBC Singers. This year’s festival finale is led by Sakari Oramo, who is joined by Sir Stephen Hough and Angel Blue. Alongside traditional Last Night of the Proms favourites, audiences can enjoy the world premiere of a new work by Carlos Simon, commissioned by the BBC.
Continuing a commitment to championing new music, some 23 premieres and BBC commissions / co-commissions will be performed at the 2024 BBC Proms. Composers Anna Clyne, Sarah Class, Sarah Gibson, Dani Howard, Steve Reich, Carlos Simon, Asteryth Sloane, Laura Poe, Elizabeth Kelly and Eric Whitacre each have a premiere, and Julius Eastman’s Symphony No. 2 and Mary Lou Williams’s Zodiac Suite will be performed in the UK for the first time.
General booking opens at 9am on Saturday 18 May: www.bbc.co.uk/proms