Preview – BBC Proms 2026: Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique

Programme

Liszt Mephisto Waltz No. 1
Thomas Adès Dante – Part 2: Purgatorio
Berlioz Symphonie fantastique

National Youth Orchestra
Conductor: Thomas Adès

Saturday 8 August 2026 · 7.30pm–c9.40pm
Royal Albert Hall

Listen on BBC Radio 3 / BBC Sounds

Preview

What’s not to love about Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique? Five movements packed full of easily discernible story, colourful orchestration, and a whiff of early 19th century salons dense with the strong, nutty-infused presence of opium. The whimsical descriptor works even if it isn’t strictly evidence-based. Symphonie fantastique is supposedly the story of a man under the influence of mind-altering substances and the neurological disturbances that ensue. Over 100 years later, psychiatrists would begin experimenting with similarly consciousness-altering compounds to treat PTSD. Could Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique be seen as a work that documents the roots of both psychiatric treatment and recreational drug use as we know them today? It might be a stretch — but if it gets you listening, any port in a storm.

Berlioz’s perennial favourite was a progressive act of creation when it was written in 1830, using the orchestra in a more overtly descriptive way than had ever been done before — novel instrumentation, and instruments deployed in new ways to create vivid evocative moments. Yet there are, especially in the pastoral third movement, unmistakable Beethoven vibes — unsurprising given that Beethoven’s Ninth, which Berlioz revered, had premiered only six years earlier, and whose slow movement casts a long atmospheric shadow over this one.

It’s a highly entertaining listen. A trusted touchstone for class music teachers — in the dwindling number of schools that still have music on the curriculum — looking to introduce the joys of classical music to impressionable youngsters. The E flat clarinet solo in the final movement is a nightmare to play and, for many, humiliating too.

The National Youth Orchestra perform Berlioz with Thomas Adès — an interesting combination. Adès is highly respected, one of those rare types who can compose and conduct and delight those with a critical eye doing both. Expect unbridled enthusiasm for the young people on stage, and so much pride in the stalls from beaming parents that the energy in this concert will feel noticeably different from many others. Resist the temptation to marvel at their capabilities simply because they are young — that would be to condescend them. Of course they’re very good. They deserve the same critical assessment as any other ensemble. A hardline Thoroughly Good view, underpinned with the utmost love and respect, of course.

Review

This review will be published following the concert.

Gallery

Photography will be added once available.