‘Sherlock’ Tunes Up for Prom at Royal Albert Hall

The BBC’s “Sherlock,” starring Benedict Cumberbatch, will be showcased as part of an evening of musical work associated with the ingenious sleuth’s character through the years.

On August 16, the Proms salutes a crime-fighting violin virtuoso who wrote a pioneering study of Dutch sacred music, tussled with a contralto from the Warsaw Opera and used Offenbach to outwit a pair of jewel thieves — all in a day’s work! (Cumberbatch, in particular, makes it look deliciously easy.)

Works by Paganini, Lassus and Wagner (whom Conan Doyle tells us Holmes loved), along with film and TV scores written for the character – from Miklós Rózsa’s The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes to David Arnold’s music from the BBC’s current edition), this Proms matinee celebrates music that conjures up the world of Sherlock Holmes.

Michael Price, who along with David Arnold composed the Emmy-winning music for the current BBC series, “Sherlock,” is looking forward to  hearing his team’s work on display with other music connected to the detective.

The Sunday matinee series,  aimed at families, is new to Prom this year. Special guests include co-creator Mark Gatiss, who plays Holmes’ brother Mycroft, reading passages from the original adventures, and mezzo-soprano Christine Rice, who explores the repertoire of Holmes’s nemesis, the opera singer Irene Adler.

The two-month BBC Proms music festival began on July 17 and features 92 concerts in total, mainly at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Edward Blakeman, this year’s Proms director, said there would be a “big focus” on piano works with more than 25 solo pianists featuring across the season.

The complete Beethoven piano concertos will be performed by Leif Ove Andsnes, while Prokofiev’s five piano concertos will played at a single prom. Six of Mozart’s late piano concertos also feature.

Marin Alsop will return to conduct the Last Night of the Proms, after her 2013 debut.

Fans of the BBC’s “Sherlock” will find a spectacular array of visual jazz at DeviantArt.

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