MUSIC
Blasts from the past With the Proms encouraging music lovers to look back, Philip Halcrow hears about a pair of late-night concerts
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HERE are some key changes, but the Proms are getting under way. This year’s festival of classical music is having to be reworked. The organisers hope that towards the end of the season, although they will probably not be able to welcome audiences to the venue, it may be possible to stage live music at the Royal Albert Hall, where programmes will include pieces commissioned for this year’s event – and for the unusual circumstances caused by the coronavirus. A major part of this Proms season will be encores. BBC TV and radio are broadcasting highlights from past concerts, and Radio 3 and the BBC’s social media platforms are inviting audiences to share their Proms memories. There have been many notable nights at the Proms. Audiences have witnessed Leonard Bernstein, André Previn and Simon Rattle conduct top orchestras. They have heard old favourites, world premieres and – notably in the Late Night Proms – different musical genres. Bazil Meade has memories of taking part in the first Gospel Prom in 2013 and a sequel three years later. The founder of London Community Gospel Choir tells the War Cry that the first of the concerts ‘was a little
Bazil Meade (centre) with London Community Gospel Choir nerve-racking, because, although we’d performed in other events at the Albert Hall, this occasion reflected that there was more confidence among broadcasters to include gospel music at that level. We’ve always strived to get the art of black church worship to be recognised at the highest level. So we were excited but nervous. We wanted it to go well.’ LCGC were one of several choirs who took part in the two evenings, where they were joined by artists such as Muyiwa and, for the second evening, Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child. Bazil enjoyed the events because they were an opportunity to sing to ‘people who would probably not go to a normal gospel concert but might have always wanted to see a gospel choir. I think there were a lot of new experiences happening for the thousands of people in the hall.’ Bazil emphasises that the artists taking part saw the nights, which included songs such as ‘Amazing Grace’ and ‘O Happy Day’, as ‘a celebration of God.
There’s an uplift that comes from gospel music
‘We were showing that we’re artists who love God and are happy to show our faith,’ he says. Bazil is sure that music in general and gospel in particular can have a positive effect. ‘Music is a wonderful, soothing therapy,’ he says. ‘It plays an important role even in healthy times, but especially now after we’ve been living in lockdown and people have been experiencing problems with mental health and relationships. ‘There’s definitely an uplift that comes from gospel music.’ That uplift, he says, is connected with the faith that underlies gospel. ‘Faith is like a log that you can grab on to when you feel as if you’re being swept away by the strong current in a river. We’re living in such an uncertain time. We don’t know what lies ahead. But faith can give us hope and strength to live through what is happening now and cope with what is ahead. ‘It’s why gospel music is inspiring and encouraging. It does not say that there are no difficulties – there are many things we don’t understand – but the message of the music can enable you to find strength.’
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18 July 2020 • War Cry • 3
