World class music heading to Sunderland with BBC Proms - here's what's in store
Enjoy world class music on Wearside with BBC Proms.
In a further coup for Sunderland’s Music City status, Wearside will welcome the world class music of BBC Proms.
After a successful inaugural city event last year, the Proms will return to Sunderland as part of the North East programme, taking place from Thursday, July 23 to Saturday, July 25.
It will be the biggest North East programme to date, with events in Sunderland, Gateshead and Middlesbrough.
As well as a central role by Royal Northern Sinfonia, the programme will feature a host of other artists reflecting our region’s talent, including Whitburn’s Nadine Shah, Northumberland folk pioneers The Unthanks, a Sunderland Proms premiere by Mendelssohn, Morton Feldman’s Crippled Symmetry and a large‑scale choral gathering featuring the BBC Singers.
The Sunderland leg of the Proms takes place on Saturday, July 25 at The Fire Station, with Royal Northern Sinfonia: Mozart and Mendelssohn, directed by Artistic Partner of The Glasshouse, violinist Maria Włoszczowska.
The programme moves from Grażyna Bacewicz’s vivid Divertimento to Mendelssohn’s inventive Concerto for Violin, Piano and Strings in D minor, which will be its first ever performance at the BBC Proms, and closes with Mozart’s radiant Symphony No. 39.
With pianist Christian Ihle Hadland joining the orchestra, the concert brings the world’s finest classical music to Sunderland, which will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3.
Tamsin Austin, Venue Director, The Fire Station said:“We are delighted to once again be hosting a BBC Prom at The Fire Station, Sunderland, and to welcome our great friends Royal Northern Sinfonia for an evening of Mozart and a first BBC Proms performance of Mendelssohn’s Concerto for Violin, Piano and Strings.
“It is yet another landmark moment for live music in Sunderland. Hearing world class orchestral music up close, in the outstanding acoustics of our intimate concert hall, is a huge treat and we are really looking forward to sharing it with audiences.
“The performance will also be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3, enabling listeners to join us from across the UK. We are grateful to our partners at The Glasshouse and BBC Radio 3 for their support in making this event possible.”
Making music affordable
Accessibility remains a big aim of BBC Proms in the North East.
Promming tickets will once again be available from £8, participatory activity and events designed to welcome audiences who may be experiencing live orchestral music for the first time.
Activity in Sunderland and Middlesbrough plays a vital role in reaching new communities and widening access across the region.
Concerts from across the weekend will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3, bringing the sound of the North East to national and international audiences.
Last year’s event had record‑breaking attendance and listening figures - and they’re hoping to reach even more people this year.
Tickets for Proms Sunderland are available here https://www.thefirestation.org.uk/whats-on/bbc-proms-mozart-and-mendelssohn-q96t