Waiting for the concert

The third day of our week at the BBC Proms. It was a lovely warm, sunny afternoon and we joined many others on the steps of the Albert Memorial to enjoy a picnic while waiting to go into the Royal Albert Hall.

It is a great atmosphere at this musical festival. The crowds sitting around outside before the concert, reading, chatting, eating, drinking, watching the passers-by, then the good natured camaraderie inside the hall, and the quiet concentration during the music. The quiet continued beyond the music tonight as the hidden womens' chorus faded away into silence at the end of Holst's "Planets" suite: everyone seemed to reluctant to break the spell and initiate the applause.