The BBC Proms hope to go ahead with two weeks of live concerts at the Royal Albert Hall to celebrate the event’s 125th anniversary.
The eight-week classical music festival was due to begin on 17 July and run through until 12 September, but has been forced to alter its plans due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The first six weeks of the event will feature the broadcasting of archived performances from the BBC, with concerts airing daily on BBC Radio 3.
The organisers then hope to end the festival with a fortnight of live music and a “poignant and unique Last Night of the Proms to bring the nation together” taking place from the Royal Albert Hall.
However, it is not clear whether social distancing rules will prevent audiences from attending the event or whether orchestras will even be able to perform together come September.
Director David Pickard described the programming as an “ambition” rather than a certainty, but he added that the organisers would “respond to the latest advice available”.
Pickard said: “These are extraordinary times for our nation and the rest of the world, but they show that we need music and the creative industries more than ever. This year it is not going to be the Proms as we know them, but the Proms as we need them.
“We will provide a stimulating and enriching musical summer for both loyal Proms audiences and people discovering the riches we have to offer for the first time.”
