Friday was the First Night in the 8 weeks of the BBC Proms, the world's greatest classical music festival. At the moment I'm listening to Bax's rather exotic Garden of Fand, which was performed on the second concert earlier this Saturday evening in London. The Proms has a website separate from that of BBC 3 here , which includes program info and the link "Proms on Radio" for listening to performances for up to 7 days following. This uses the BBC iPlayer which uses Real Player for making most of their programs, including Proms performances, available for 7 days.

Last night I replayed the 10th Proms Concert(available for six more days), which I enjoyed the most so far. On Part 1 the concert began with the first public performance(lost for about 80 years)of Bax's In Memoriam, commemorating the execution of an Irish revolutionary friend of his. Pleasant work, certainly far superior to some of the aural garbage some "modern" classical composers have been trying to pass off as music during the past 50 years or so. It continued with the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 1, a remarkable composition, especially for a 17 year-old.

After the intermission program, on Part 2 , the Vaughan Williams Symphony No. 4 was played. Vaughan Williams is one of my favorite composers(I have three complete sets of his nine symphonies plus some individual discs)and this year the Proms is featuring many of his works, commemorating the 50th year after his death.

Thanks John. I just started listening to Part 1 and am enjoying it on my Audiobytes now.

I was able to get some of it in after a lengthy download wait. Then a computer malfunction sent me back to square one. Will try to get back to it in the morning. Beautiful photos on the site. Just listened to Bach's minuet in G Major and Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto in B Flat Minor. The music is on the best of nature quest CD so it's mixed with nature sounds playing in the background. Forgot I had this Cd in the collection. My Dachshund looks up at the speakers in curiosity from time to time, he's not sure what's happening. Must be the Axiom's. Time to order more just to keep him guessing.

The ability of the Internet to allow people to discover and learn from others is a wonderful thing. Listening to Part 1 at work right now.

Listened to Prom 19 which took place earlier this evening in London. On Part 2 of the concert(available for seven more days)Rachmaninoff's last composition, his Symphonic Dances, was played. One of my favorites, it's a beautiful composition about 40 minutes in length.

On Part 2 of Prom 24 the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra has a fine performance of the melodious Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2.

Would you say Rach's sophomore symphony effort is heaps better than his first?

No, I love all three of the symphonies and have multiple recordings of each, but if I had to choose, the 1st would be my favorite(especially Przytocki's performance). The first performance of it was a disaster with an apparently drunk Glazunov conducting and sent Rachmaninoff into a depression that one of J.P's predecessors, Dr. Dahl, helped him out of. The symphony was discarded for over 40 years until the parts were found during WWII and reconstructed into what many now recognize as a masterpiece.

OK John, You got me.
For a few moments there I thought you mistook one of your classical links with one of your 'late night' links. I clicked on the link then switched back to the Axiom page while the Prom buffered up and the first thing I hear is a woman's throaty voice talking about how she used to wish she was a carpet for people to walk on and how eventually she realized she wanted to be a magic carpet.

I quickly switched back and it was indeed the BBC page and eventually it did change to chat about Rachmaninoff and then the music.

You did get me good though John. I thought I had either misclicked or we were seeing a brief glimpse into the 'other' more 'medicinal marijuana' enhanced side of John K.
In fact, could this be him????
Orchestra conductor

Kidding of course. Thanks, as always, for the great music

More great Rachmaninoff at The Proms. On Part 1 of Prom 34 the BBC Philharmonic performs the Symphony No. 1.

Just finished listening to Prom 46 which took place earlier this evening in London. It consisted of a rarity in the concert hall, a complete performance(about 2 1/2 hours)of Tchaikovsky's wonderful music for The Sleeping Beauty. I have CD sets of two complete musical performances plus two complete performances of the ballet on DVD, and enjoyed this performance, by Valery Gergiev and the London Symphony, very much.

This past Tuesday was the 50th anniversary of Vaughan Williams' death, and in commemoration Prom 54 had Sir Andrew Davis conducting the BBC Symphony in a program of four of his fine works. Then, on Prom 55 in Part 2 following the 20 minute intermission his Lark Ascending, which is high on the Most Beautiful Music Ever Written lists was played, with the 2nd Suite from Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe adding more beauty to conclude the concert.

The New York Philharmonic with conductor Lorin Maazel was in London for Prom 58 and presented a concert of very colorful music: suites from Ravel's Ma mere l'oye and Bartok's The Miraculous Mandarin, with Tchaikovsky's 4th Symphony on Part 2 following the intermission.

Earlier this evening on Part 1 of Prom 73 Vaughan Williams' Sinfonia Antartica, commemorating Scott's attempt to reach the South Pole, which proved fatal to all, was performed. On Part 3, following intermission programming, Holst's The Planets was played.