Well we are now definitely into September. It's the tenth already! Today is one of my favorite times of the year. We are at "The Last Night of the Proms."
I will be listening to the BBC today to hear the concerts live. Listen on BBC Radio 2
The Last Night marks the end of what was once called "The Season." In years gone by the British aristocracy would migrate in and out of London for parties and meeting with friends during the period when their estates required little management. They would attend parties, go to the horse races and spend most of the summer whiling the days with entertainments like the theater. Before returning to the country to oversee the harvest on their estates. Now the Proms still remain as a legacy of those days of Empire.
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Many see the Last Night as a bad thing, jingoistic and nationalist. Personally I love the Last Night. Like the Americans see Labor Day, last weekend here, for me the Last Night is the start of months of fun times.
Before the end of the month, there is my birthday. For those of you who wonder I'll be 55. October sees preparations for Halloween. The back in England I would have been planning for Bonfire Night on November 5, this year I am hoping to produce a program about Bonfire Night for local TV. Then of course being here in the US there comes the Election and Thanksgiving. Followed rapidly by Christmas and New Year.
But memories of Septembers past cram my mind today. The bite of a frosty morning as I walked to school, the joys of going to look for conkers in the park. Then claiming or trying to claim the title of playground conker champ for the season with my great, twentier. The special conker, preserved for years on my bedside table. The conker that conqueored all comers. The Last night of the Proms, 'Rule Britannia" and "British Sea Songs."
Do you remember this secen last year, recorded as I listened to "No Place Like Home"?
Yes, Leif laying on his back, sleeping as the Radio plays. I have to smile at this dog.
Finally, I will leave you with one of my favorite renderings of "Rule Britannia" from the last decade of the Proms. Sarah Conelly dressed in full Late 18th Century, Naval Officers Uniform. Enjoy the fun, and singalong if you like.
I will be listening to the BBC today to hear the concerts live. Listen on BBC Radio 2
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| Inside the Royal Albert Hall, London. U.K. (Image B.B.C. Website) |
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Many see the Last Night as a bad thing, jingoistic and nationalist. Personally I love the Last Night. Like the Americans see Labor Day, last weekend here, for me the Last Night is the start of months of fun times.
Before the end of the month, there is my birthday. For those of you who wonder I'll be 55. October sees preparations for Halloween. The back in England I would have been planning for Bonfire Night on November 5, this year I am hoping to produce a program about Bonfire Night for local TV. Then of course being here in the US there comes the Election and Thanksgiving. Followed rapidly by Christmas and New Year.
But memories of Septembers past cram my mind today. The bite of a frosty morning as I walked to school, the joys of going to look for conkers in the park. Then claiming or trying to claim the title of playground conker champ for the season with my great, twentier. The special conker, preserved for years on my bedside table. The conker that conqueored all comers. The Last night of the Proms, 'Rule Britannia" and "British Sea Songs."
Do you remember this secen last year, recorded as I listened to "No Place Like Home"?
Yes, Leif laying on his back, sleeping as the Radio plays. I have to smile at this dog.
Finally, I will leave you with one of my favorite renderings of "Rule Britannia" from the last decade of the Proms. Sarah Conelly dressed in full Late 18th Century, Naval Officers Uniform. Enjoy the fun, and singalong if you like.
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