As Yannick Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra arrived in London for planned concerts at the BBC Proms, news of the death of Queen Elizabeth II became known.
At the request of the BBC, Yannick and the Orchestra gathered on stage at the Royal Albert Hall for a moment of silence, and then, before a rapt audience, performed the British National Anthem and Edward Elgar’s beautifully elegiac “Nimrod” from his “Enigma” Variations, and quietly left the stage.
Playing in London is a homecoming for our President & CEO Matías Tarnopolsky, who was raised in the British capital. “It is actually very hard to put into words the emotional impact,” he told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “It really felt like the musicians, Yannick, and the audience were a part of history. To have an American orchestra commemorating this huge moment of transition in British history was at once an honor and privilege, and profoundly moving.”
We would like to express our deepest sympathy to the British people on the news of the death of the queen.
It is our sincere hope that this music, with its profound meaning, will serve in some way as the United Kingdom and the world mourn the passing of this remarkable leader.