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One of the new features of TV coverage of the Proms this year has been the prominence given to Late Night concerts. If the cameras have been in for the first show of the day, why not keep them there and record the second? Already Ö÷²¥´óÐã4 viewers have enjoyed a sequence of Percy Grainger’s music in a programme exploringÌýits folk roots, withÌýNorthumbrian piper Kathryn Tickell;ÌýNigel Kennedy’s soloÌýBach concert goes out on last night-eve,Ìýand you can catch the visual tricks, as well as the home-made sound effects of the Spaghetti Western Orchestra this Friday night on Ö÷²¥´óÐã 4 at 7.30pm.

Last Friday, Charles Hazelwood and I got to chew the cud in the tiny (andÌý not-in-any-way-Tardis-like) room allocated to Proms presenters. Ritula Shah joined in the fun as well. The room – in reality a boxed-off corner of the main office – is where we do research, iron shirts, and sit on the off-white sofa learning scripts. I think it was white once...Ìý Ritula, star presenter of Radio 4’s The World Tonight, madeÌýher Proms debut alongside Charles in the live broadcast of the first of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe Brahms concerts.ÌýThen I took over to introduce Brahms for solo piano, and Brahms re-thought by Schoenberg, in the late concert.

AsÌýif things weren't complicated enough for presenters,ÌýI fronted it live on Radio 3 (you can listen toÌýthe concertÌýhere)Ìýas well as recorded for TV. The first bit was straightforward enough –Ìýa link from the platform to introduce the wonderful pianist Angela Hewitt.Ìý‘Can you speak direct to the the camera,’ said the TV producer in my ear. Simultaneously, from the radio producer standing next to me: ‘You’ll need to ignore the camera and address the whole audience’. Always good to be in agreement! It seemed sensible to go for the latter option in the end,Ìý a good illustration of the sometimes complex issue of balancing the needs of the ticket-buying RAH audience, and the license-fee paying listeners and viewers at home.

The next link, into the Proms premiere of Schumann’s Introduction and Concert Allegro, was exclusive to Radio 3;Ìý TV viewers will see a brief interview with Angela at that point, recorded earlier.Ìý Then things got really complicated. Ö÷²¥´óÐã Scottish Symphony Orchestra conductor Andrew Manze, great sport that he is, had agreed to chat live about Schoenberg’s orchestration of Brahms’ first Piano Quartet during the long stage move. We relocated to a dressing room backstage, where after the Schumann I filled for two minutes for radio listeners, telling them about upcoming Proms. Then I silently manhandled our maestro on to the right spot,Ìý dropped my script on the floor, eyed the camera, and paused for just a second before introducing Andrew, and chatting with him about Brahms for five minutes.

The aim was to make it sound smooth and uninterrupted for radio listeners –ÌýI think we got away with it, thanks in a large part to Andrew’s enthusiasm and passion.Ìý You can judge for yourself how it all comes together on TV; it’s shown on Ö÷²¥´óÐã4 on Friday 2nd September.Ìý Not that you’ll be watching for the presenter –ÌýweÌýmerely offer packaging and context – it’s the music that counts, and the Ö÷²¥´óÐã Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Angela and Andrew managed to produce a thrilling concert which perfectly suited the late night mood.

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Marc-André Hamelin

‘How does the Ö÷²¥´óÐã decide Ìýwhich Proms get televised?’ is a question I’m often asked.Ìý Availability of transmission slots and budgets play a part in the decision making,Ìýof course, but I think the schedule does represent the variety of the Proms on screen, from serious to light-hearted,Ìý glossy foreign orchestras to the Ö÷²¥´óÐã’s own ensembles,Ìýgrand spectacles like Verdi’s Requiem to a man almost alone on stage (Nigel Kennedy).Ìý

We all have our own wish-list of what we’d love to see from the comfort of our living rooms – I’d certainly put in a request for Marc-André Hamelin’s Liszt late-nighter tonight. He’s a pianist who I adore listening to, whether it’s playing fireworks by Liszt or Godowsky, or being more reflective in Chopin and Haydn.Ìý His studio performance on In Tune this week painted amazing sound pictures of forests imagined by Liszt and fountains evoked by Ravel. You can listen here.

Hamelin told me how much he was looking forward to getting the feel of the RAH acoustics in rehearsal – almost unbelievably he has only performed once before at the Proms, when he stepped in at the eleventh hour to play Liszt’s 1st concerto with the Ö÷²¥´óÐã Scottish back in 1994.Ìý You wait a long time for M. Hamelin, and then like a bus … he’ll be back again on the 3rd of September playing Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. I can’t wait.

Petroc Trelawny is a journalist and presenter for Ö÷²¥´óÐã Radio 3 andÌýÖ÷²¥´óÐã Television

Find details of all the Ö÷²¥´óÐã Proms radio and TV broadcasts

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