The Covid Proms - 27th October 2020

MORPETH ROTARY AT THE PROMS ON ZOOM

The joys of entertainment and song are not easy to find during the current restrictions but international opera singer Graeme Danby hosted a wonderful mini ‘Last Night of the Proms’ on Zoom as part of the Morpeth Rotary meeting last week. Graeme and his wife Valerie Reid, both of English National Opera, sang along with Lizzie Browell and Rachel Dyson, daughter of Morpeth Rotary President Colin Dyson. Everyone had been asked to bring flags and other suitable last night decorations and fine efforts had been made. The lady singers were splendid in colourful and stylish formal evening gowns and matching jewellery. Graeme sported a fine waistcoat and union jack bowler.

The first singer was Lizzie Browell with ‘The Monk and his Cat’ by Samuel Barber. Valerie Reid followed with ‘Blow the Wind Southerly’ with Graeme on piano. Graeme trained at the Royal Academy of Music from 1980 to 1984. 

Prof. Andrew Hamnett of Morpeth Rotary provided an interesting factual interlude on Sir Henry Wood. He was a church organist who went for formal musical training at the Royal Academy of Music aged 17. His break came when he was appointed conductor for the Carl Rosa Opera Company in 1891. He was asked by Robert Newman to conduct a series of promenade concerts at the Queen’s Hall from 1895. The early concerts played mainly light music and charged low prices. Audiences were allowed to smoke and to take refreshments at any time. They could not afford to pay for much rehearsal time and some musicians did not turn up anyway. To ensure he got what he wanted Henry Wood wrote detailed instructions on the music. At one point he was accused of not featuring British composers but soon championed Sullivan, Elgar and Delius. He travelled extensively in the UK and trained young conductors including Adrian Boult and Malcolm Sargent. In the 1920s there were problems with patrons and the BBC agreed to take over the Proms. WWII forced them to move out of London. Sir Henry Wood died in 1944. 

Rachel Dyson then sang ‘Bird Fly High’ by Eric Boswell the Sunderland composer who wrote ‘Little Donkey’. Graeme has done much to promote the music of the north east and recorded and performed many of Eric Boswell’s compositions. This was followed by Graeme singing another of his, the comedy song ‘The Great Longbenton Leek’. 

There was a grand finale of well known songs from the last night of the Proms. Rachel and Val each sang parts of ‘I Vow to Thee My Country’, Graeme and Val sang ‘Jerusalem’, Rachel and Val shared Rule Britannia featuring a beautiful dress with union jacks as part of bat wing sleeves. Graeme regularly supports charity events for Ponteland Rotary. He and the other singers were thanked for a wonderful evening.