Customer Reviews

The Last Night of the Proms

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Yes, everybody from Andrew Davis to the last person in Hyde Park listening to the concert has to say this words: thank you Hilary Hahn. Her performance, in my opinion, has been the most beautiful, touching, measured moment through all the event. While everybody screamed on any other piece, demonstrating that in this kind of events the most important thing is the SHOW (the "english" show...), during Hilary Hahn's performance (half an hour with Mozart violin concerto n.4 and Bach's presto from sonata n.1 as encore) nobody spoke. everybody stopped and stared at an angel playing the violin. only Hilary Hahn can do that in a Hall with more than 6000 people inside whatching her.
a religious silence covered the royal albert hall that night, when she started playing. the other pieces in the program are the symbol of english music, of UK's military power; but every orchestra plays this kind of music in the same way.
nothing to do with miss Hahn: no one plays like her.
conductor...2 stars (he's not precise...); orchestra 4 stars;5 stars to Hilary (is it possible to put 10 stars...?).

If you thought classical music lovers all over the world came neatly dressed and sat quietly during the concerts, here is a concert that will change all such impressions. This is the Last Night of the Proms concert conducted by Sir Andrew Davis.

The music on this DVD is a bit British oriented, which is a norm for the Last Night, I guess. There is an orchestral arrangement of Bach's prelude by Elgar. And then there is Rule Britannia by Arne, Pomp and Circumstance March by Elgar, Fantasia on Sea Songs by Sir Henry Wood, Jerusalem etc accompanied by claps, baloon bursts, taxi horns and what not! The musical arrangment of Sir Andrew's farewel speech is a nice curiosity in addition to the "traditional" pieces performed in a Proms' finale.

I have two reservations about this DVD before recommending this disc to anyone:

1) The layer switch on this dual layer DVD happens towards the last note of the Shostakovich's Jazz Suite. On some DVD players like mine, this causes a momentary pause and drains all the excitement away from such a piece. I am sure the DVD specifications allow the data files on the disc to be organized in such a way to avoid the layer switch in the middle of a track.

2) The programme is interwoven with interviews and announcements, which is good for the first time, but boring on repeated listenings.

But I'd still recommend this disc to anyone who would like to sample the excitement of the Last Night, but could never be there yet.

I didn't know about this dvd until a few months ago when I was browsing Hilary's website and I found a link to this dvd. The person who reviewed this dvd before me didn't even mention that Hilary Hahn plays on this. I was delighted when I finally bought this and went home to play it.

I've been a huge fan of Hilary Hahn ever since her debut Bach cd came out. Alot of people were arguing that the Chaconne was too slow but I loved it. When I heard the Brahms, I was totally blown away. Well this performance of Mozart Concerto 4 with the Bach G min Presto as an encore really blew me away again.

First of all, Hilary has the most perfect bow arm I've seen since Milstein, not alot of bow pressure but alot of speed and a deadly accurate sense of timing, she also plays clear articulate legatos and a spiccato that is always dead on. Like Milstein, her vibrato is very modest and never overstated but at times approaches the romanticness of Mr. Szeryng: always in good taste but never overly so.

I would have preferred a dvd of the Brahms because the cd really blew me away but this is equally impressive. According to her web journal she has been playing concertos by Paganini, Spohr, Vieuxtemps 4, Bruch and Korngold. I'm trying to imagine watching those concerts on video as well. Hey Hilary, please keep the videos coming!

This 2000 version of Last Night at the Proms pays a special tribute to Sir Andrew Davis, who held the role of conductor of the BBC Symphony & Orchestra from 1988 to 2000.

As a frequent visitor to Great Britain, I have watched the BBC broadcast of previous years of the Last Night of the Proms, and found myself very much a part of the celebrations of British Heritage!

Watching the 2000 version on this DVD was no exception, it is wonderful having the option of playing the individual tracks such as Land of Hope and Glory, Rule Britannia and Jerusalem! Another option the DVD allows is to watch the full program with or without some limited commentary.

Enjoy!!

We loved the music and what fun it is to see all the gala in England. We watch it every Christmas Eve while baking and celebrating.
Very inspiring to see all so happy !!!1

The Last Night of the Proms is for those who like classical London vaudeville. Featuring the farewell performance by conductor Sir Andrew Davis, the DVD intersperses interview outtakes with Sir Andrew with the magnificent performances of the orchestra and performers.

This is not a DVD that will appeal to all. But, if you enjoy traditional British 19th Century popular songs then Last Night at the Proms holds a delightful experience for you.

Had problem with delivery....ordered 2 day delivery for a special occasion.....received an e-mail advising that item would arrived a week later (no delivery problems mentioned at the time of the original order). Called Amazon...was assured items would be sent out immediately 2 day delivery at no charge (nice)....unfortunately, because of the weekend, item still arrived a week later. Disappointing, but no big deal....Grace P.