The Last Night of the Proms

Oh, those wacky Brits. Are they a laugh a minute or what? Here's the final night of the 2000 BBC Proms, an eight-week classical musical event that's been going on since the days when Britannia really did rule the waves. Thousands of people jam London's august Royal Albert Hall, where they dress informally, wear funny hats, toss beach balls, wave the Union Jack, and generally carry on, all while listening to hour after bloody hour of works by Bach, Mozart and others. It's all a bit twee, as the British might say, but the music (played by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sir Andrew Davis) is good, as are the featured soloists (young American virtuoso Hilary Hahn on Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 4, Brit soprano Jane Eaglen warbling some Richard Strauss). By the time we get to the traditional show closers (did you know that both “Pomp and Circumstance” and “Rule, Britannia” clock in at over nine minutes?!), the audience gathered at both the concert and at outdoor locations in London, Liverpool and Birmingham are having a really grand old time--as may other classical enthusiasts with long attention spans, for whom this is primarily recommended. Aud: P. (S. Graham)