Fantasia on British Sea Songs

Fantasia on British Sea Songs or Fantasy on British Sea Songs is a piece of classical music arranged by Sir Henry Wood in 1905 to mark the centenary of the Battle of Trafalgar. It is a medley on British sea songs and now forms an indispensable item at the BBC's Last Night of the Proms concert - although it was dropped in the 2008 Proms.

Wood's arrangement comprised nine parts which follow the course of the battle from the point of view of a British sailor, starting with the call to arms, progressing through the death of a comrade, thoughts of home, and ending with a victorious return and the assertion that Britain will continue to 'rule the waves'. In recent years, with the development of concerts running simultaneously in different parts of Britain, the BBC has added Irish, Scottish and Welsh songs which have obscured Wood's original 'plot'.

The fantasia commences with a series of six naval bugle calls and their responses. These calls were traditionally used to convey orders on a naval warship. The first call is "Admiral's salute", call five is "Prepare to ram" and the final call is "Quick double, extend and close". In 2005, the bugle calls were restored to the fantasia after a long absence, although "Ye Spanish Ladies" was removed, replaced by the Welsh, Scottish and Irish songs, arranged by Bob Chilcott: "Ar Hyd y Nos", "The Skye Boat Song" and "Danny Boy".

"Rule, Britannia!" was originally included in this Fantasia, but for many years up to the 2000 Last Night of the Proms, it had been performed in the arrangement by Sir Malcolm Sargent, with a noted opera singer to encourage the audience to sing the refrain. Since 2002, the BBC has reverted back to the original arrangement that Sir Henry Wood made for this Fantasia, performing just one verse with chorus for audience participation. [cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007/aboutmusic/p72_wood.shtml| title = BBC - Proms - Henry Wood (1869-1944) - Fantasia on British Sea Songs (with additional numbers arranged by Bob Chilcott) | accessdate = 2007-09-09| year = 2007| work = Programme notes on the Sea Songs Fantasy on the BBC Proms website| publisher = BBC]

Crowd participation during the Fantasia is essential. Mock tears are shed by the audience during "Tom Bowling", feet are stamped in time to the introduction of "Jack's the Lad", a familiar tune which gets faster and faster, being followed by the honking of hooters and a crescendoing clapping during the climax. Occasionally the orchestra have been known to deliberately perform this part out of tune in response to the audience. The frantic pace is then juxtaposed with the solemn humming with "Home, Sweet Home" and then the whistling of the melody of "See, The Conquering Hero Comes". All this culminates in the "prommers" singing the refrain of "Rule, Britannia!" This routine is obligatory on the part of the "prommers" (the audience members standing in the promenade area, hence "proms") and is always interspersed with the ill-timed firing of party poppers and blowing of party whistles, to the general amusement of the audience and orchestra. During the various solos, the performing artist often "ad libs" their own variation on the melody and various parts of the Fantasia are often repeated at the request of the audience, whose participation is usually encouraged by light-hearted mockery on the part of the conductor.

Movements

# Bugle Calls
# The Anchor's Weighed
# The Saucy Arethusa
# Tom Bowling
# Jack's The Lad (Hornpipe)
# Farewell and Adieu, Ye Spanish Ladies
# Home, Sweet Home
# See, the Conqu'ring Hero Comes
# Rule, Britannia!

References