Leeds Symphony Orchestra

Last Night of the Proms

St Margaret's Church, Horsforth

Saturday 8th July 2017

It seems impossible to believe that almost 50 years have passed since the death of Sir Malcolm Sargent. The idolised Proms chief conductor from 1947-66 established the Last Night's patriotic audience sing along of Land of Hope and Glory, Rule Britannia and Jerusalem.

The LSO's programme included these essential ingredients and much more. Martin Binks opened the final concert of his 47th season as the orchestra's esteemed conductor with a frothy, well paced performance of Berlioz' Overture to Beatrice and Benedict. Items featuring the Horsforth Choral Society included Handel's imposing Coronation Anthem Zadok the Priest, and the stirring Anvil Chorus from Verdi's Il Trovatore. Both were projected with clarity across fairly dense orchestral textures. It was good to hear this fine choir in some quieter numbers - notably Mozart's serene Ave Verum Corpus and the impassioned Va Pensiero (Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves). Soprano Heather Jane Taylor and tenor Joseph Spratt treated the capacity audience to a splendid rendition of the final sequence of arias from Act 1 of Puccini's La Boheme - complete with a heavenly fade-out of the duet O Soave Fanciulla. I overheard a wildly applauding gentleman describe Ms Walker's polished performance of Vissi d'arte from Puccini's Tosca as "absolutely fabulous". Mr Spratt, meanwhile, predictably raised the roof with his climactic high C in Nessun Dorma.

The first performance of a brand new work is always an important occasion. Ben Munro, a sixth former at King James' School, Knaresborough has composed The Chase, a descriptive piece showcasing every section of the orchestra. His inventively scored piece richly deserves success in the BBC Young Composer of the Year Competition.

And so to the grand finale with a sea of fluttering Union flags and a remarkably tuneful audience bolstered by Horsforth Choral Society. I could hear every word of Rule Britannia sung - with stratospheric vocal ornamentation - by Heather Jane Taylor. Martin Binks at the helm of his beloved LSO was the amiable master of ceremonies.

Geoffrey Mogridge