The Glasshouse

• Weekend celebrating music made in the North East, part of nationwide music festival.
• BBC Radio 3 set to broadcast from the North East during the weekend celebration.

BBC Proms at The Glasshouse:
Friday 26 July – Sunday 28 July 2024

Building on the success of last summer’s festival weekend in Gateshead, this year BBC Proms makes a resounding return to the place where music lives and grows, The Glasshouse.

The weekend in July is part of a series of BBC Proms weekends happening in July, August, and September across Gateshead, Bristol and Nottingham. They promise a musical extravaganza celebrating everything loved about classical music – inclusion, innovation, and pure joy for all ages. Audiences can dive into the magic with four unique orchestras – Royal Northern Sinfonia in Gateshead, BBC Concert Orchestra in Nottingham, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the Paraorchestra in Bristol – at their core.

Kicking off BBC Proms at The Glasshouse on Friday 26 July, audiences are in for an unforgettable night with conductor Dinis Sousa at the helm of Royal Northern Sinfonia, performing one of the most recognisable works for violin, Sibelius’s Violin Concerto with Alena Baeva, described by the New York Classical Review as “a magnetic presence”.

In the same concert, audiences will enjoy the charming elegance of Germaine Tailleferre’s Petite suite pour orchestra, characterised by its subtle playfulness and graceful melodies. Then, a moment of anticipation builds during the interval for the grand finale; audiences will be swept away by the exuberance of Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8, a breathtaking symphonic masterpiece.

And that’s just the beginning. Popular BBC presenters Sarah Mohr-Pietsch and Hannah Peel host the 11pm Night Tracks Live with Hannah Peel and Beibei Wang and Hania Rani joining the line-up, alongside a sextet from Royal Northern Sinfonia, led by Maria Włoszczowska. Expect an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for all night owls out there.

Saturday 27 July promises to be a day filled with soulful beats and contemporary collaborations as the immensely talented jazz, soul, alternative Grammy-nominated musician Jordan Rakei joins forces with Royal Northern Sinfonia and conductor Robert Ames, bringing new arrangements from his latest album The Loop and previous releases.

At 10pm that night, don’t miss the very first BBC Introducing Live at the Proms, featuring artists who’ve emerged through BBC Introducing, celebrating fresh and exciting music creation. Additionally, a BBC Introducing concourse stage will feature new independent artists from the North East and beyond.

On the final day, audiences can be uplifted by Voices of the Rivers Edge, a dynamic choir comprised of young singers from the North East, making a triumphant return. Having graced the stages of BBC Proms events for the past two years, they bring their captivating performances back to the stage. Under the direction of Ellie Slorach, their afternoon family Prom titled ‘Fantasy, Myths, and Legends,’ will transport audiences to a world of enchantment with music from iconic films like Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones, featuring compositions by John Williams, Mussorgsky, Joe Hisaishi, Edvard Grieg, and Howard Shore.

The weekend is wrapped up with a flourish at 3pm on the Sunday with Daniel Pioro & Friends. This performance brings together violinist Daniel Pioro with soprano Ruby Hughes, harpsichordist David Gordon, and cellist Clare O’Connell for a delightful performance.

But that’s not all. The BBC Open Music Trainees will be teaming up with The Glasshouse team to curate a Saturday evening concert like no other. They will transform the concourse into a vibrant space and utilise the Northern Rock Foundation Hall as a BBC Radio 3 broadcast hub over the weekend, as well as programming the BBC Introducing Live at the Proms concert.

Young music enthusiasts from across the North and the UK will also have the chance to participate in workshops led by a prominent composer, diving into the works of music creation.

Radio 3 will also set up shop at The Glasshouse, broadcasting during the celebratory weekend. This move lets them soak up all the excitement and buzz from performers and audiences, as well as diving into behind-the-scenes action.

Abigail Pogson, Managing Director at The Glasshouse said:

“Collaborating with BBC Proms for a second festival for the North East is something to really shout about. And this year it’ll be the first time as The Glasshouse International Centre for Music. Our programme brings an abundance of musical talent across musical genres with our very own orchestra Royal Northern Sinfonia at the heart of the weekend. With artists ranging from Hania Rani, Hannah Peel and Beibei Wang to Jordan Rakei, Royal Northern Sinfonia, youth choir VOTRE and emerging North East artists, there’s something for everyone. Music lives and grows at The Glasshouse and we can’t wait to welcome audiences to The Glasshouse and via BBC Radio 3 to the festival.”

Sam Jackson, Controller, Radio 3 and BBC Proms said: “Following last year’s hugely successful BBC Proms Gateshead, I am delighted we’re returning for another weekend festival at the Glasshouse International Centre for Music. Audiences in the North-East of England can look forward to a programme bursting with Proms flavour and local talent, including the welcome return of the Royal Northern Sinfonia and the Voices of the River’s Edge community youth choir, and the BBC Proms debut of rising star Jordan Rakei. For those who can’t join us in Gateshead, every note will be broadcast on Radio 3 and BBC Sounds.”

BBC Proms at The Glasshouse takes place from Friday 26 July to Sunday 28 July 2024. Tickets for all events, including promming (standing) tickets, will go on sale at 12noon on Thursday 25 April.

-ENDS-

For press enquiries please contact Susie Gray, Premier Scotland

+44 7834 073 795 / Susie.Gray@premiercomms.com

Notes for editors:

BBC Proms at The Glasshouse

Friday 26 – Sunday 28 July 2024

Friday 26 July / 7.30pm
BBC Proms – Sibelius Violin Concerto
Dinis Sousa conductor
Alena Baeva violin
Royal Northern Sinfonia

Friday 26 July / 11pm
BBC Proms – Night Tracks Live
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presenter
Hannah Peel presenter

Saturday 27 July / 7.30pm
BBC Proms – Jordan Rakei & Royal Northern Sinfonia
Robert Ames conductor 
Jordan Rakei
Royal Northern Sinfonia

Saturday 27 July / 10pm
BBC Proms – BBC Introducing Live at the Proms
New music from the most exciting up-and-coming artists around.

Sunday 28 July / 2.30pm
BBC Proms – Fantasy, Myths and Legends
Ellie Slorach conductor
Voices of the River’s Edge choir
Royal Northern Sinfonia

Sunday 28 July / 3pm
BBC Proms – Daniel Pioro & Friends
Daniel Pioro violin
Ruby Hughes soprano
Clare O’Connell cello
David Gordon harpsichord

About The Glasshouse International Centre for Music

The Glasshouse International Centre for Music is a home for live music lovers.

It’s a place where you can hear rock legends or pop icons on the same night as folk trios or string quartets. Where new musicians are nurtured and showcased on the same stages as platinum-selling performers. And where youth choirs and tambourine-shaking toddlers practise in the same spaces as its acclaimed orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia.

Because as an international centre for music they’re focused on creating and celebrating outstanding music – whether that’s unearthing or growing talent from the region or bringing the world’s best artists to their stages. And as a charity they’re focused on making sure all of that is available to anyone – no matter where you’re from, how old you are, how much money you have, or what challenges you face.

Which is why every year more than 2 million people are able to enjoy top-notch gigs, concerts, and classes – in their venue at Gateshead Quays, out in communities across the North East, and through livestreamed performances and digital lessons.

Whether you’re making it up or taking it in, you’ll find music lives and grows here.

More about The Glasshouse

• From global stars to artists starting out, The Glasshouse has hosted 10,022 performances, totalling 4.7m tickets. To have seen every performance would have meant seeing one show every day for 27 years.
• It’s hosted over 220,000 music lessons for North East folk. The region’s young people have learnt to play, sing or produce with us, on over 1.7m occasions.
• Royal Northern Sinfonia perform at The Glasshouse, tour the region, and have played to international audiences on four continents, with livestreams reaching people across five.
• Like stepping stones, artists like Ward Thomas have worked their way from their free stages to selling out its big hall and getting global recognition.
• The Glasshouse regularly opens its doors to a wide range of conferences and events. Since 2004, they’ve welcome over 400,000 delegates from the likes of Greggs, NHS and British Engines, and many, many more.
• The charity is one of Gateshead’s biggest employers, and so far it’s generated £500m of economic value to the region.
• The charity has been the proud guardians of The Glasshouse for almost 20 years, safeguarding it when live music was put on hold during the pandemic.
• The centre has 630 panes of glass and stands 40m tall.

BBC Open Music

BBC Open Music brings creatives and musicians of all genres, styles and backgrounds from across the UK to the BBC; designed to develop new skills whilst exploring collaborations and ideas across orchestral and classical music broadcasting at the BBC. Trainees receive training sessions, masterclasses, hands-on experience and mentoring to develop their skills, voice and ideas across the following areas radio production, live event production, presenting, sound recording and engineering and digital production.