Various venues/BBC Radio 3Seven concerts around the
UK – one from each of the BBC’s performing groups – included some glorious moments, but the motley collection of works failed to create a celebratory or memorable whole
Though the exact centenary does not fall until October, the
BBC is spreading celebrations of its anniversary throughout the year and across its networks. The BBC orchestras, some of which are as old as the corporation itself, got their contribution in early, with a weekend of concerts from each of the seven current ensembles, all broadcast live on Radio 3 from their home halls.
The importance of these orchestras in serious music-making in the UK across the past 100 years can’t be overstated. While their independent counterparts around the country have always had to keep one eye on the
box office, mindful of the need to attract audiences and to tailor their concerts accordingly, the BBC bands have always had a freer hand, and have consistently been able to tackle more ambitious repertoire – works that were more demanding of resources and rehearsal time, or were unlikely to attract large audiences. And though their programmes nowadays may be less adventurous than they were, say, in the 1960s and 70s, when William Glock was the controller of
music, the BBC remains the most important champion of large-scale new works in the UK, responsible for more premieres each year than all the country’s other orchestras put together.