On Tour: Behind the Scenes at BBC Proms Japan
Rose Hooks is part of HarrisonParrott’s touring department, and she shares her highlights from the trip
HarrisonParrott managed the inaugural BBC Proms Japan, a six-day festival with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and its Chief Conductor, Thomas Dausgaard, at Bunkamura Orchard Hall in Tokyo and Symphony Hall in Osaka, from 30 October to 4 November
Scheduling
With a complex colour-coded technical schedule accounting for every hour of every day for every venue, we knew things were (mostly!) under control.
The loading bay
The crew eagerly awaits the arrival of the cargo truck as it backs into the loading bay, reuniting the musicians with their instruments after almost five days of painful separation.
Piano soloist Yulianna Avdeeva
The wonderful Yulianna Avdeeva was the first soloist of the festival, performing Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto for the first three concerts of the Festival – pictured here from behind the camera lens.
Tokyo's Orchard Hall
The final adjustments take place on stage at Tokyo’s Orchard Hall, with the lighting department going above and beyond (literally) to bring some of the sparkle and charm of London’s Royal Albert Hall, home of the BBC Proms, to Japan.
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The Osaka Symphony Hall
Wardrobe
Happy musicians are always one of our most important objectives on tour, so we thought we’d have some wardrobe boxes built specially for the members of the orchestra – no carrying the glad rags around here.
Sheet music
In usual BBC Proms fashion, the BBC SSO under Thomas Dausgaard performed not only classics such as Bruch’s Violin Concerto No.1, Sibelius’s Finlandia and Mahler’s Symphony No.5, but also contemporary works, including by Japanese composers such as Toshio Hosokawa. Violinist Taro Hakase took to the podium to play – direct some of his best-known pieces with the orchestra.
BBC Proms Japan Rugby World CupHarrisonParrott Foundation
We couldn’t spend two weeks in Japan without a quick visit to the Rugby World Cup Final, could we?
Last Night of the Proms
Back to the concert halls where Jess Gillam, joined us for the Last Night of the Japan Proms, performing Milhaud’s Scaramouche Suite
Sneaky Peak
The sixth and final performance of the estival, the Last Night of the Japan Proms, had the audience on their feet, waving flags and singing along to the traditional hits we all know and love to hear at the LNOP in London, including Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance and Auld Lang Syne.
Tour Manager Rose Hooks
Another successful tour complete, my ninth of the year, here’s to the BBC Proms continuing to thrive across the world for years to come!
