Something very special happened in Bradford at St George’s Hall on Yorkshire Day, just a few weeks ago. 

Branded as the first-ever Yorkshire Proms was an evening of popular classical music organised by The Yorkshire Society, sponsored by Bradford Council and with the support of the Delius Society. The concert was given by the wonderful Yorkshire Symphony Orchestra under its Conductor and Director Ben Crick, with the Bradford Festival Choral Society and the remarkable Bantam of the Opera Choir.

The first part of the programme was appropriately enough devoted to music by fine but relatively neglected Yorkshire composers. The evening was opened with the brilliant Bradford Overture by gifted young Brighouse born composer, Jarrod Royle-Atkins, best known for his acclaimed international film scores, followed by the little-known Ernest Farrer (1985 -1918) who grew up in Harrogate but died tragically in the first World war. Then came the work of another Harrogate composer, Gerald Finzi (1901-56). Finally, came a piece by the most internationally well-known composer born in Yorkshire, Fredrick Delius (1862-1934), with a superb performance of his rarely played North Country Sketches from 1913-14 inspired by his Bradfordboyhood memories of the moors and fells of the Yorkshire Dales.

Whilst this first part of the evening established the fact that there are Yorkshire composers of significance and importance, past and present, the second half provided much more of a traditional ‘Last Night of the Proms’ style with choral favourites from Hallelujah Chorus and Zadok the Priest, to a wonderful rendering of the famous Habanera from Bizet’s Carmen by mezzo-soprano Annabel Joseph and the Bantams Choir, and of course Elgar’s popular Pomp and Circumstance march.

The climax of the evening was surely Ben Crick’s own new work, an orchestral fantasy entitled Yorkshire Garland, a compilation based on traditional Yorkshire folk songs gathered from all over the Region ending with the audience clapping to the Jack-the-Lad hornpipe before the massed choir rose to its feet for a triumphal rendering of Ilkla Mooar Baht ‘At, Yorkshire’s own unofficial national anthem, with the audience joining in, waving countless Yorkshire flags and making the event everything it was intended to be – a triumph.

There were tears of joy and pride in the audience; not quite Finlandia perhaps, but something moving in that direction as the sublime power of music conveyed by a great symphony orchestra communicates its message on so many levels. Let’s hope that suitable funding and sponsorship can be found to make this amazing Yorkshire Prom concert happen again in 2027 – and even become an annual event. 

For further information please email contact@theyorkshiresociety.org