The Public and the Proms
SIR,—The Spectator inquiry into the Public and the Proms has created much interest, but to me the results seem fairly predictable and can be analysed as follows.
Divide the promenaders into three groups- Snobs, Sir Malcolm fans and Music-lovers—and award them Olympic medals.
The Snobs got two gold medals and a silver with the Boulez programme and Schoenberg (twice); the Sir Malcolm fans got a gold by sheer force of numbers, and a bronze presumably for the Beethoven 9th finale. However, it was, thank good- ness, the Music-lovers that swept the board, taking all three medals in both the solo singer and in- strumentalist fields with Heather Harper, Richard Lewis, Gwyneth Jones, Jacqueline du Pre, Henryk Szeryng and Stephen "Bishop, as well as gaining another gold and two silver with Shostakovich 8th/ LSO/Rozhdestvensky, Beethoven 7th/LSO/Davis and Bruckner 8th (or was this really a Snob award?); also three bronzes with Nielsen, Shostakovich (again) and Rozhdestvesnky.
I wonder how many of those who acclaimed the Boulez concert would know one work from the other---without a programme'?
RODNEY ti. DOWNES
15 Old Manor Court, Abbey Road, NW8
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