As thoughts gradually turn to the summer months, for an orchestral musician in the United Kingdom, especially one in a BBC orchestra, that can only mean one thing - Proms! I'm really looking forward to our Proms this year, as we will be performing some really dynamic repertoire.
There will undoubtedly be a scramble for tickets for our two Doctor Who Proms (13/14 July, Proms 2 and 3). In this, the show's 50th anniversary year, you are invited to join the BBC National Orchestra of Wales along with Murray Gold and Ben Foster for what promises to be two very special musical adventures.
Royal Albert Hall, London
Hot on the tail of our adventure through time and space comes Prom 9 on 18 July. In this concert, principal conductor Thomas Søndergård's Proms debut, we will perform Stenhammer's Excelsior!, and will be joined by both our own Chorus and that of the BBC Symphony for Szymanowski's Third Symphony - both of these will be new works for me. After that, an infestation of horn players will descend upon the hall for Strauss' epic Alpine Symphony.
This season we have recorded with the lovely Raphael Wallfisch, and it will be fab to play with him again as he joins us for Bantock's Sapphic Poem in Prom 16 on 24 July.
I encourage you to get as close to the front as possible to have a nosy at his cello - it is really beautiful. Under the baton of principal guest conductor Jac van Steen, we shall also be performing Tchaikovsky's Symphony No 4.
Thomas rejoins us for Prom 21 (29 July). I think this is the Prom I am most looking forward to as it features a UK premiere (Colin Matthews' Turning Point), one of my favourite soloists (Daniel Hope), and a Shostakovich symphony that I've never had the opportunity to perform before (No. 11).
Our final London Prom on 12 August, with conductor David Atherton, fittingly features Vaughan Williams' A London Symphony, but also a sitar concerto! I'm quite excited about that. The work's composer, Nishat Khan, will be the soloist for this world premiere, which is also a BBC commission.
As a whole, this year's Proms season looks really impressive. It's not just that every night involves great music and great performers, but the fringe events that have developed around the main Proms compliment and enhance the concert experience.
Many of these events are free (such as the Proms Plus events held at the Royal College of Music), and give the audience intimate access to performers, to illuminating talks on the evenings repertoire, and even the opportunity to join in with the music making. I would thoroughly recommend checking some of these out.
The BBC Proms offers us the opportunity to reflect upon the rich musical heritage that this country has. With each year, the Proms season fills me with the conviction that the arts have a place within our society, and indeed, that they have a pivotal role to play, offering solace, escapism, and frequently a mirror through which we can understand aspects of ourselves more clearly.
The Proms are an affordable, unifying, accessible to everyone event. I look forward each year, not only to meeting with colleagues from other orchestras, but also to seeing familiar Prommers, to seeing the festival atmosphere queues of people waiting for tickets, and to being part of such an incredible celebration of music.
Tickets for the BBC Proms at London's Royal Albert Hall go on sale on Saturday 11 May at 9am. For more information visit the BBC Proms website.
