Carolyn Sampson on Sir Mark Elder conducts Mahler’s 5th (Prom 4, 21 July)

The BBC Proms represent many things that we should hold dear: the thrill of the highest quality music-making in a glorious hall; the range, from large-scale works involving hundreds of people to the most intimate late-night solo performances; the variety of genres now on offer; plus relaxed Proms for those who can enjoy music better in that environment. Another feature is the championing of contemporary music, which is partly what draws me to this particular highlight.

I’m really looking forward to hearing Sir James MacMillan’s Timotheus, Bacchus and Cecilia, which was premiered only last year and unites choirs of children and adults. Anything that celebrates youth singing already has my heart, as that is how I came to classical music, and I’m sure it is going to be as exciting for performers and audience alike to share something new. Pairing modern with traditional repertoire is something else I find interesting. Do we then come to the “old” piece with fresher ears? The Mahler that follows will be a wonderful celebration of the Hallé’s extraordinary relationship with Sir Mark Elder.
• Carolyn’s pick, Prom 4, is at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 21 July. Carolyn Sampson is the soprano soloist in St John’s Passion/Bach Collegium Japan in Prom 40 on 19 August

Stephen Hough on The Sinfonia of London and John Wilson (Prom 21, 4 Aug)

John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London’s Walton First Symphony at the Proms last summer was for me one of the greatest concert experiences of the year. This year they are focusing on American music with a handful of great classics, including that most famous American classic of all – Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, celebrating its 100th birthday, and John Adams’ Harmonielehre, which Wilson has told me is for him the greatest piece of US orchestral music. Audiences will be in for a treat. Unlike some composers in 20th-century Europe who were dismissive of popular taste (if the public likes something it can’t be good), America, like the Proms, has always celebrated its audiences. This concert shows some reasons why.
• Stephen’s pick, Prom 21, is at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 4 August. Stephen Hough is a soloist at the Last Night of the Proms.

Tom Fetherstonhaugh on Mozart with Ensemble Resonanz (Prom 41, 20 Aug)

This Prom brings together some of Mozart’s most life-affirming works. With masterpieces from his symphonic, concerto and operatic genres, the programme is a tour de force of his music. Opera overtures frame the concert: the first-half curtain rises with the comic hustle and bustle of The Marriage of Figaro, while the second half opens with the fate-fuelled Don Giovanni. The Sinfonia Concertante is as symphonic as it is a concerto, a hybrid genre that features two virtuosic soloists – and here, violinist Clara-Jumi Kang and violist Timothy Ridout will join forces for what promises to be a thrilling artistic partnership. Symphony 41 – nicknamed “Jupiter” – is Mozart’s last. It is joyous and sunny, yet contains plenty of that operatic drama for which Mozart is so well-known. Ensemble Resonanz and conductor Riccardo Minasi – a Mozart specialist – perform this repertoire with such energy and brilliance. Their album of Mozart’s final three symphonies is spectacular (it was released just before lockdown in 2020 and I played it on repeat during those early months!). Give it a listen to get a taster of what promises to be an enthralling Prom.
• Tom’s pick, Prom 41, is at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 20 August. Tom Fetherstonhaugh conducts the Fantasia Orchestra in Prom 20 on 4 August.

Dinis Sousa on Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass (Prom 50, 28 Aug)

A mass? An orgy? Novelist Milan Kundera famously said the Glagolitic Mass by Leoš Janáček was more the latter. And you need only listen to the first few bars to hear what he meant. No sooner have the trumpets started playing the opening fanfare than the full string section comes crashing in on a seemingly unrelated pulse. Then the whole thing just keeps rising to impossible heights, taking harmonic turns that defy musical gravity. As with so much of Janáček’s music, the entire piece is like a wild dream where unimaginable things happen in such an astonishingly vivid way, culminating in an organ solo like no other – perfect for the Royal Albert Hall. This is music that sounds like it’s being created in the moment. Yet I also find it extremely personal and moving, and with the Czech Phil and a great lineup of singers conducted by Jakub Hrůša, it’s not to be missed.
• Dinis’s pick, Prom 50, is at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 28 August. Dinis Sousa conducts the Royal Northern Sinfonia at the BBC Proms at The Glasshouse weekend, Gateshead, on 26 July.

Anna Clyne on Klaus Mäkelä conducts the Symphonie Fantastique ( Prom 58, 3 Sept)

It’s always exciting when there is an undeniable chemistry between an orchestra and their chief conductor. The Orchestre de Paris and Klaus Mäkelä have that in spades, and it’ll be on full display in this dazzling programme. This orchestra performed Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique at their first concert over 50 years ago. I first heard this piece during my residency with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. I was captivated by the sonorities Berlioz conjures with his layering of various instruments to deliver the story of an artist who, in the depths of despair over his unrequited love, poisons himself with opium, which takes him on a fantastical journey. Also on the programme is one of the most iconic flute solos in classical music: the introduction to Debussy’s Prélude à l’Après-midi d’un Faune. One can’t help but fall in love with this sumptuous music – or with one of my favourite ballet scores, Stravinsky’s Petrushka.
• Anna’s pick, Prom 58, is at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 3 September. The world premiere of Anna Clyne’s The Gorgeous Nothings is on 30 July (Prom 15).

• The BBC Proms open on Friday 19 July. Full details here.