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Live at the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Proms: the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Symphony Orchestra and ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Symphony Chorus, conducted by Sakari Oramo, in Debussy's twilight Nocturnes, and a rare chance to hear Ethel Smyth's Mass.

Presented by Petroc Trelawny, live from the Royal Albert Hall, London

Claude Debussy: Nocturnes

20.05
Interval: The music historian Leah Broad joins Petroc Trelawny to explore Smyth's choral writing.

20.25
Ethel Smyth: Mass in D major

Nardus Williams (soprano)
Bethan Langford (mezzo-soprano)
Robert Murray (tenor)
Božidar Smiljanić (bass-baritone)
³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Symphony Chorus
³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Symphony Orchestra
Sakari Oramo (conductor)

Ethel Smyth wasn’t especially religious: the text and images of the Catholic Mass simply thrilled her. ‘What words! What words!’ she exclaimed, and her monumental Mass in D major is one of the crowning glories of the British choral tradition. Following their widely admired 2019 recording (‘fiercely committed, highly persuasive’ – ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Music Magazine) Sakari Oramo and the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Symphony Orchestra give the first Proms performance since the composer’s own lifetime, with rising operatic star Nardus Williams heading an impressive quartet of soloists. Debussy’s Nocturnes begin the evening in a very different, but no less beautiful world – blurring the edges of sound itself to create music that seems to glow in the dark.