Friday Night is Music Night – A Tribute
by Philip Harrison

Friday Night is Music Night is more than seventy years old. It pre-dates even Hancock’s Half Hour, first airing on the BBC Light Programme in 1953. It was the idea, I think, of Sidney Torch who conducted many of its earliest broadcasts. When the Light Programme became Radio 2 in 1967, Friday Night is Music Night went with it and there it remained. Two years ago, in April 2024 the vintage show moved over to BBC Radio 3.

The programme is probably the world’s longest-running radio show devoted primarily to light orchestral music, though other genres of light music are well catered for, as we shall see . In its long history It has usually been broadcast live, and these days it comes from a variety of different venues. It usually, though not always, features the versatile fifty- to sixty-piece ensemble that is the BBC Concert Orchestra. The music featured is mostly tuneful, familiar and uplifting, coming from the rich legacy of the British and European light music canon, film music and hits from the shows. There is usually a theme to the evening, and it is sometimes quite specific: “The Great Outdoors”, “Flying”, “Sounds of Spring”, “Music from the Fair” are some recent examples. The producers sometimes devote the programme to an anniversary like “VE Day 80” or “Julie Andrews at 90”. When the show came to Cheltenham last year for the festival they linked to the nearby GCHQ with a programme devoted to 80 years of spying!

There was a time when I would never have given the time of day to Friday Night is Music Night. I foolishly thought myself too knowledgeable or experienced with classical music to need this type of entertainment, little snippets of works, pops, hackneyed arias. I have always loved light music it is true, but with a large collection of CDs from the catalogues of Hyperion, Naxos and (not least) Guild on my shelves, why did I need to listen to this?

The BBC has been lucky in having some incredibly talented producers and engineers over the years and Friday Night is Music Night is, and always has been, produced and presented with real style, love and, importantly, a nod back to its proud tradition and heritage. The show always begins with its signature theme tune: High Adventure by Charles Williams and the sequence of music is invariably well thought through. I am always surprised at how much great music they can get through in the allocated time. As an example, let me cite the first time the programme was broadcast on TV. Happily, this can still be found on YouTube. This concert dates from August 2005 and was recorded at the Mermaid Theatre in London. The evening was compèred by the late Roy Hudd. In less than an hour the superb John Wilson conducting the BBC Concert Orchestra gets through this little lot:
– Charles Williams – Devil’s Galop
– Robert Farnon – Portrait of a Flirt
– Trevor Duncan – March from A Little Suite
– Arthur Wood – Barwick Green
– Leroy Anderson – The Typewriter
– Haydn Wood – Roses of Picardy (sung by Janis Kelly)
– Eric Coates – Calling all Workers
– Eric Coates – By the Sleepy Lagoon
– Angela Morley – A Canadian in Mayfair
– Jack Strachey – In Party Mood
– Ronald Binge – Sailing By
– Erno Rapee – Charmaine
– Edward White – Puffin’ Billy
– Eric Coates – Birdsongs at Eventide (sung by Janis Kelly)
– Eric Coates – Dambusters March

Since starting up again on Radio 3 in April 2024, the programme has continued also to provide a platform for conductors and soloists to gain experience in the repertory. Singers from the musicals in London have appeared regularly. In addition, some young instrumental soloists have been showcased. Twice in the last year the show has featured the exciting young pianist and darling of Deutsche Grammophon, Julius Asal. On holiday in Cyprus at the time of writing, I was happy to see the BBC Sounds app on my tablet still allows me to access and play his Ravel Piano Concerto from February 2025. As a performance it is a little bit untidy, to be perfectly honest, but it’s nice it is still there. Asal also played Jeux d’eau after the interval as part of the lovely French programme conducted by Michael Seal (the other music, by the way, featured Bizet, Percy Fletcher, Alan Langford, Bennett, Fauré, Chaminade and Peter Hope).

Looking at the programmes since the move to BBC Radio 3 I noticed that the frequency of live shows is increasing, which is most encouraging. I counted the following:
– 2024 from April to July: 15 shows
– 2024/25 season (September to July): 18 shows
– 2025/26 season (September to time of writing): 18 shows

Since April 2024, Friday Night is Music Night has been conducted most often by the veteran Richard Balcombe (7 times) and the chief conductor of the BBC Concert Orchestra, Anna-Maria Helsing (6 times). Now that Maida Vale is not routinely used by the BBC orchestras, they have performed the show a fair few times at Alexandra Palace and visited many other venues, mostly it has to be said in the south of England.

One thing I do admire is how often young conductors have been employed, in particular women. Here are some names:
– Owain Park (known for his work with The Gesualdo Six and due to take over the BBC Singers this summer)
– Karen Ní Bhroin
– Ellie Slorach
– Gabriella Teychenné
– Helen Harrison
– Daniel Parkinson
– Fiona Monbet

Other names perhaps more familiar to us record collectors include these greats:
– Gavin Sutherland
– Martin Yates
– John Andrews
– Stephen Bell

For a recent celebration of Ivor Novello in Cardiff, the expert Ian McMillan-Davidson conducted the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Earlier in the season for a programme at Saffron Hall, Bob Chilcott and John Rutter both conducted their own works.

For me Friday night always starts with The News Quiz at 6.30pm on Radio 4 (I do so miss Sandi Toksvig, even now). After that I cannot always devote the whole evening to Friday Night is Music Night, but when I can, I usually find the experience a happy one. I would recommend it to one and all, especially in the mad world we are all living in at present. The BBC’s commitment to it over the years is noble. I lament, however, that for budgetary reasons (I assume), overseas listeners no longer have access to programmes like this or others on the BBC website. Let us hope this is a temporary policy that may be changed eventually, now there is a new chief in the corporation. Another passion of mine, BBC’s Radio 4 Extra, often replays old classics like The Goon Show or Round the Horne. These shows are long gone, though not forgotten. It is credit to the BBC that Friday Night is Music Night, an old relic dating from the time when Churchill was still the PM, still goes on. Long may it prosper.

Philip Harrison