Proms Plus and Family Fun

Designed to enhance audience engagement by providing context, insight and entry points to the music, Proms Plus comprises six categories: Intro, Literary, Sing, Family, Portrait and Late (at the Royal Albert Hall):

Proms Plus Intro

The 28 Intros give the audience an opportunity to learn more about the programme in the evening’s Prom, exploring a variety of elements from the magical soundworld of Doctor Who over its 50-year history (13 July) to Mahler and spirituality (9 August) and a special ‘Discover The Ring’ series which will delve into the extraordinary world of Wagner’s Ring cycle. There will be an introduction to the story and characters, and insights into production and performance challenges ahead of the four operas (22, 23, 26, 28 July).

Proms Plus Literary

A varied line-up of high-profi le speakers explore the cultural themes behind the music. They include conductor, rock guitarist and blogger Kenneth Woods on Gustav Mahler (15 July) and writer John le Carré on his groundbreaking Cold War espionage novel, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year (29 July). There will also be a discussion on the legacy of Sylvia Plath 50 years after her death and the publication of her novel The Bell Jar (8 August), while former Poet Laureate Andrew Motion and poet Paul Farley talk about Louis MacNeice, one of the most popular and influential of the Thirties Poets (2 September).

Proms Plus Sing

A series of workshops aimed at providing a vocal insight into a range of works and composers featured at this year’s Proms, from the familiar to the less well-known. Led by Mary King the music explored includes Verdi’s Four Sacred Pieces (20 July), Wagner’s Tannhäuser (4 August) and Brahms’s A German Requiem (17 August). There will also be a session focusing on Britten and his mastery of word-setting (10 August) and a Last Night singalong (7 September).

Proms Plus Family

Rachel Leach leads a series of free family-friendly workshops at the Royal College of Music, introducing families to the music that will be performed at that evening’s Prom in a fun and interactive way. Families are invited to bring along their instruments and enjoy a journey through the music of six specially selected Proms: Strauss’s An Alpine Symphony (18 July), Falla’s The Three-Cornered Hat (25 July), the music of the 1953 coronation (6 August), Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition (13 August), works by Wagner, Ravel and Shostakovich (24 August) and Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra (30 August).

Proms Plus Family Orchestra & Chorus

Families are invited to join professional musicians in playing and creating music together. The orchestra and chorus are open to family members of all musical levels, from those who have never played or sung before, to budding musicians and rusty returners. This year’s family orchestra and chorus will take inspiration from Doctor Who (14 July), Rachmaninov’s Symphony No. 2 (20 July), Ravel, Pintscher and Stravinsky (18 August) and the Family Prom (1 September).

Proms Plus Composer Portrait

Four of the composers who have commissions being premiered at the festival offer an intimate insight into the genesis of their works. In events held at the Royal College of Music, audiences will hear Naresh Sohal, Edward Cowie, Param Vir and Charlotte Seither discuss their new compositions, and will also have the opportunity to listen to some of their chamber works. These will be performed by musicians from the RCM (Naresh Sohal, The Cosmic Dance, 2 August), the Royal Northern College of Music (Edward Cowie, Earth Music 1 – The Great Barrier Reef, 5 August), the Royal Academy of Music (Param Vir, Cave of Luminous Mind, 21 August) and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (Charlotte Seither, Language of Leaving, 28 August).

Proms Plus Late

Relaxed and informal post-Prom events featuring poetry and music from young artists in the Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room.

Proms Plus Storytime

A new initiative for 2013 introduces two Storytime events aimed at families with children aged 3 to 7. Presenter Hannah Conway, accompanied by a chamber orchestra, will interact with the audience in musical retellings of two very popular books. Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers (13 July, City of London Sinfonia) and I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen (4 August, Britten Sinfonia). Both events will be recorded for broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4 Extra.

Family Prom

The annual Family Prom will this year be a new musical version of Michael Rosen’s We’re Going on a Bear Hunt presented by the author himself and with live illustrations by Tony Ross. A family’s courageous search for a bear will be brought to life through music performed by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and 160 children from In Harmony Liverpool and Liverpool Philharmonic Children’s Choirs (1 September).

BBC Proms Doctor Who Competition

Following the success of the Wallace & Gromit Soundtrack competition, the Doctor Who ‘Create a Soundtrack’ competition encourages young people aged 11 to 16 to create their own electronic pieces of music. A series of short fi lms that show how to create electronic music have been commissioned by BBC Learning. Armed with these resources, students are challenged to write a soundtrack to one of a selection of scenes from Doctor Who. The winning pieces will be performed within the 2013 Doctor Who Proms (13 & 14 July).

Inspire

Now in its 15th year, the BBC Proms Inspire Young Composers’ Competition is the festival’s search for the nation’s brightest young composers. The deadline for entries is 27 May and winning and highly commended entries will be performed by the Aurora Orchestra conducted by Nicholas Collon at the Inspire Young Composers’ concert at the Royal College of Music (7 August). A series of four free composition workshops also take place throughout the Proms season (13 July, 7, 16 & 31 August).

For the second year running, seats are half-price for under-18s for all Proms concerts across the season (except for the Last Night).