Unlock the publisher's digest free
Roula Khalaf, editor -in -chief of the FT, selects her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
BBC proms may not officially be the biggest world music festival, but it is still huge. The 2025 season includes more than 80 concerts played by more than 60 British and international sets. Here is my choice of the best.
The new piano superstar
August 1
A rush to tickets can be expected for the Prom with Yunchan LimThe new keyboard star and another 21 years. He will play the Rachmaninov piano concerto n ° 4, probably the least often played by the four. In an enterprising program, Kazuki Yamada and the Symphonic Orchestra of the City of Birmingham, Rachmaninov, with John Adams and Luciano Berio, one of the composers of this year's centenary.
Sitar virtuosity
August 12
After its previous stars appearances at the BBC proms, the virtuoso and the Sitar composer Anoushka Shankar Return to the proms for the world's world performance in the new orchestral music arrangements of his album “Chapter” Trilogy: Forever, for the moment,, How dark before dawnAnd We return to light. Robert Ames directs the London Contemporary Orchestra.
How and when to reserve tickets for BBC balls
Tickets can be purchased online at Royalberthall.com; On the phone on 020 7070 4441 or in person at the Royal Albert Hall, London
9 a.m. Thursday May 15
Season and weekend passes are on sale
9 a.m. Friday May 16
The following balls are put up for sale:
The Treatments (July 26)
Prom relaxed: the planets (August 10)
Prom cbeebies: a magical story at bedtime (August 25)
9 a.m. Saturday May 17th
All the remaining balls are put up for sale, except for the last night of the proms. For more details on the reservation of tickets for the last night, visit bbc.co.uk
Beyond the Ghibli studio
August 14
Admirers of Joe HisishiThe longtime composer's colleague from Japanese director and host Hayao Miyazaki, will welcome his debut at the Proms, leading the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. An extract from the Hisishi score for My neighbor Totoro was played in 2023, but this concert will offer a major work, The end of the worldHis vision of a post-nuclear wasteland. He is twinned with Steve Reich The music of the desertWilliam Carlos Williams poetry in response to Hiroshima's bombing.
Choral work of the great Renaissance
August 17
Alongside the usual usual romantic choral works, comes an equivalent of the Renaissance when The spiritual concert And its founder Hervé Niquet interprets the mass of Alessandro Striggio Here is yes the Blessed Day. Written around 1565, the mass was on a previously unknown scale, culminating in an “Agnus dei” in 40 parts. The spiritual concert interprets him alongside more striggio and music by the composers of the 16th and 17th century Benevolo, Corteccia and Palestrina.
Klaus Mäkelä, producing prodigy
August 23 and 24
With two orchestras in the bag and future meetings pending in two of the 10 best in the world, Klaus Mäkelä promises to be the king of Jet-Set. This concerts Offers the first opportunity to the BBC proms to see it with the Royal Concertgebouw orchestra in Amsterdam, where he is designated conductor. Mäkelä programs include Luciano Berio RenderingHis “restoration” of the fragments that Schubert left for a last symphony and orchestral scores of Mahler and Bartók.
“ Lady Macbeth '' from Chostakovich
September 1st
The 2025 season could barely neglect the 50th anniversary of Chostakovich's death. Eight proms will present his music, the most ambitious being this concert performance of his 1934 opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk. Forbidden in the Soviet Union for almost 30 years, there remains an opera of strength and passion praised today. Amanda Majeski and Nicky Spence lead the casting. John Storgårds leads the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.
Ten years of Chinake!
September 5
In a unique pairing, Simon Rattle appears for the first time with Chineke! OrchestraEuropean pioneer orchestra of black musicians and ethnically diverse. This year marks 10 years from Chineke! was founded and during this period, he built an international reputation. Rattle, a long-standing supporter, runs music by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, George Walker and Shostakovich.
And finally. . .
September 13
THE Last night balls The eight -week season at its end. There are no changes this year in suspended traditions. The trumpeter Alison Balsom is the instrumental soloist, the soprano Louise Alder goes up for patriotic hymns, and Elim Chan leads the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the last date of their non-stop summer calendar.
Find out first of all our latest stories – Follow the FT weekend on Instagram And XAnd register To receive the FT weekend newsletter every Saturday morning
