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124-537: The National Youth Choir also has a number of additional programmes and schemes, including its three Emerging Professional Artist programmes, the Fellowship , Young Conductors and Young Composers schemes, and its Learning & Engagement programme. The organisation also has a strong community of over 1,000 former members, National Youth Choir Alumni , who often participate in performances alongside National Youth Choir's flagship choirs. The National Youth Choir

248-477: A colour bar in place at the Hall, preventing black boxers from fighting there, between 1923 and 1932. Greats of British boxing such as Frank Bruno , Prince Naseem Hamed , Henry Cooper and Lennox Lewis have all appeared at the venue. The hall's storied boxing history was halted in 1999 when it lost its licence to hold boxing and wrestling matches after complaints from residents about noise levels. In 2011, after

372-468: A duet , Die Liebe hat uns nun vereint ("Love has now united us"). Felix Mendelssohn described Albert playing the Buckingham Palace organ "so charmingly and clearly and correctly that it would have done credit to any professional". After tuition from George Elvey , the organist at St George's Chapel, Windsor, Albert composed several choral pieces for Anglican worship, including settings of

496-450: A junior Member of the house of Saxe-Coburg ". The position in which Albert was placed by his marriage, while one of distinction, also offered considerable difficulties; in his own words, "I am very happy and contented; but the difficulty in filling my place with the proper dignity is that I am only the husband, not the master in the house." The Queen's household was run by her former governess, Baroness Lehzen . Albert referred to her as

620-405: A minority government and the opposition took advantage of the marriage to weaken his position further. They opposed a British peerage for Albert and granted him a smaller annuity than previous consorts, £30,000 instead of the usual £50,000. Albert claimed that he had no need of a British peerage, writing: "It would almost be a step downwards, for as a Duke of Saxony, I feel myself much higher than

744-612: A peer —partly because of anti-German sentiment and a desire to exclude Albert from any political role. Albert's religious views provided a small amount of controversy when the marriage was debated in Parliament: although as a member of the Lutheran Evangelical Church Albert was a Protestant, the non- Episcopal nature of his church was considered worrisome. Of greater concern, however, was that some of Albert's family were Roman Catholic. Melbourne led

868-548: A "singular example of quartering differenced arms, [which] is not in accordance with the rules of Heraldry, and is in itself an heraldic contradiction." Prior to his marriage Albert used the arms of his father undifferenced, in accordance with German custom. Albert's Garter stall plate displays his arms surmounted by a royal crown with six crests for the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; these are from left to right: 1. "A bull's head caboshed Gules armed and ringed Argent, crowned Or,

992-529: A Duke of York or Kent." For the next seventeen years, Albert was formally titled "HRH Prince Albert" until, on 25 June 1857, Victoria formally granted him the title Prince Consort . Victoria explained, in a letter to Lord Palmerston on 15 March 1857, that she was: "... inclined ... to content herself by simply giving her husband by Letters Patent the title of 'Prince Consort' which can injure no one while it will give him an English title consistent with his position, & avoid his being treated by Foreign Courts as

1116-539: A border that follows the oval curve of the building. Between 2002 and 2004, there was a major rebuilding of the great organ (known as the Voice of Jupiter), built by "Father" Henry Willis in 1871 and rebuilt by Harrison & Harrison in 1924 and 1933. The rebuilding was performed by Mander Organs , and it is now the second-largest pipe organ in the British Isles with 9,997 pipes in 147 stops. The largest

1240-424: A four-week period in 2000 using steel supports allowing more space underneath for two new bars; 1,534 unique pivoting seats were laid – with an addition of 180 prime seats. The Choirs were rebuilt at the same time. The whole building was redecorated in a style that reinforces its Victorian identity. 43,000 sq ft (4,000 m ) of new carpets were laid in the rooms, stairs, and corridors – specially woven with

1364-642: A keen interest in the improvement of army training, and was involved in the establishment and development of Aldershot in Hampshire as a garrison town and training base in the 1850s. A wooden Royal Pavilion was built there in which he and Victoria would often stay when they attended military reviews. Albert established and endowed the Prince Consort's Library at Aldershot, which still exists. Biographies published after his death were typically heavy on eulogy. Theodore Martin 's five-volume magnum opus

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1488-509: A knighthood for Charles Darwin, after the publication of On the Origin of Species , which was opposed by the Bishop of Oxford . Albert continued to devote himself to the education of his family and the management of the royal household. His children's governess, Lady Lyttelton , thought him unusually kind and patient, and described him joining in family games with enthusiasm. He felt keenly

1612-488: A landmark. In 1949, the canvas awning was removed and replaced with fluted aluminium panels below the glass roof, in a new attempt to cure the echo; but the acoustics were not properly tackled until 1969 when large fibreglass acoustic diffusing discs (commonly referred to as "mushrooms" or "flying saucers") were installed below the ceiling. In 1968, the Hall hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 1968 which

1736-497: A legal battle, the licence to host boxing and wrestling events was restored and boxing events resumed in 2012, taking place regularly until 2021. In 2019 Nicola Adams won the WBO Flyweight title which was the first fight for a world title at the venue since Marco Antonio Barrera took on Paul Lloyd in 1999. One notable event was a Pink Floyd concert held on 26 June 1969, the night they were banned from ever playing at

1860-609: A memorial was proposed for Hyde Park, with a Great Hall opposite. The proposal was approved, and the site was purchased with some of the profits from the Exhibition. The Hall was designed by civil engineers Captain Francis Fowke and Major-General Henry Y. D. Scott of the Royal Engineers and built by Lucas Brothers . The designers were heavily influenced by ancient amphitheatres but had also been exposed to

1984-457: A new Café Bar on the ground floor, a new Box Office with shop counters and additional toilets. The design and construction were carried out by contractor 8Build. Upon opening it was renamed 'The Zvi and Ofra Meitar Porch and Foyer.' owing to a large donation from the couple. In Autumn 2013, work began on replacing the Victorian steam heating system over three years and improving cooling across

2108-574: A new south porch, named The Meitar Foyer after a significant donation from Mr & Mrs Meitar. The porch was built on a similar scale and style to the three pre-existing porches at Door 3, 6 and 9: these works were undertaken by Taylor Woodrow Construction. On 4 June 2004, the project received the Europa Nostra Award for remarkable achievement. The East (Door 3) and West (Door 9) porches were glazed and new bars opened along with ramps to improve disabled access. The Stalls were rebuilt in

2232-541: A patron and purchaser of pictures and sculpture, the commission was set up to promote the fine arts in Britain. The commission's work was slow, and the palace's architect, Charles Barry , took many decisions out of the commissioners' hands by decorating rooms with ornate furnishings that were treated as part of the architecture. Albert was more successful as a private patron and collector. Among his notable purchases were early German and Italian paintings—such as Lucas Cranach

2356-539: A public carriage ride, Albert and the pregnant Victoria were shot at by Edward Oxford , who was later judged insane. Neither Albert nor Victoria was hurt, and Albert was praised in the newspapers for his courage and coolness during the attack. He was gaining public support as well as political influence, which showed itself practically when, in August, Parliament passed the Regency Act 1840 to designate him regent in

2480-561: A realignment of the Saxon duchies the following year; and Albert's father became the first reigning duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha . Albert and his elder brother, Ernest , spent their youth in close companionship, which was marred by their parents' turbulent marriage and eventual separation and divorce. After their mother was exiled from court in 1824, she married her lover, Alexander von Hanstein, Count of Pölzig and Beiersdorf . She presumably never saw her children again, and died of cancer at

2604-624: A reputation for supporting public causes, such as educational reform and the abolition of slavery worldwide, and he was entrusted with running the Queen's household , office and estates. He was heavily involved with the organisation of the Great Exhibition of 1851, which was a resounding success. Victoria came to depend more and more on Albert's support and guidance. He aided the development of Britain's constitutional monarchy by persuading his wife to be less partisan in her dealings with

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2728-680: A second period, finally reopening to full capacity in July 2021. On 11 November 2023, before the Festival of Remembrance , King Charles III and Queen Camilla unveiled two bronze statues of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh , as part of the Hall's 150th anniversary. The Hall, a Grade I listed building , is an ellipse in plan, with its external major and minor axes of 272 and 236 feet (83 and 72 meters), and its internal minor and major axis of 185 and 219 feet (56 and 67 m). The great glass and wrought-iron dome roofing

2852-512: A series of events at other venues across the United Kingdom. In 2009, the total number of concerts reached 100 for the first time. Jiří Bělohlávek described The Proms as "the world's largest and most democratic musical festival" of all such events in the world of classical music festivals. Proms (short for promenade concerts ) is a term which arose from the original practice of the audience promenading, or strolling, in some areas during

2976-440: A set of pieces for singers aged 18-25 and NYC's Fellowship Ensemble composed by that year's cohort of young composers. Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington , London , England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres have appeared on its stage. It

3100-555: A trip to Coburg in October 1860, when he was driving alone in a carriage drawn by four horses that suddenly bolted. As the horses continued to gallop toward a wagon waiting at a railway crossing, Albert jumped for his life from the carriage. One of the horses was killed in the collision, and Albert was badly shaken though his only physical injuries were cuts and bruises. He confided in his brother and eldest daughter that he sensed that his time had come. Victoria's mother and Albert's aunt,

3224-580: A venue he dubbed a 'helluva hall'), and Eric Clapton (who has played the venue over 200 times), among others, who were viewed as "key players" in the building's history. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , restrictions meant the Hall was closed in March 2020 for the first time since the Second World War. During winter 2020 it reopened for three socially distanced performances but was then closed for

3348-438: A wide diversity of genres and vocal styles, and NYC regularly creates and releases audio and video recordings on its own record label, National Youth Choir Recordings , and online platforms. NYC also supports the development of emerging young professionals through its Fellowship programme for future choral leaders and performers, its Young Composers scheme and its Young Conductors programme (launched in 2024). Lucy Hollins

3472-429: Is struck by a bullet, which did not happen in real life. In the United Kingdom, Albert was styled "His Serene Highness Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha" in the months before his marriage. He was granted the style of Royal Highness on 6 February 1840, and given the title of Prince Consort on 25 June 1857. Upon his marriage to Queen Victoria in 1840, Prince Albert received a personal grant of arms , being

3596-651: Is the Grand Organ in Liverpool Cathedral which has 10,268 pipes. During the first half of 2011, changes were made to the backstage areas to relocate and increase the size of crew catering areas under the South Steps away from the stage and create additional dressing rooms nearer to the stage. From January to May 2013, the Box Office area at Door 12 underwent further modernisation to include

3720-466: Is the venue for the BBC Proms concerts, which have been held there every summer since 1941. It is host to more than 390 shows in the main auditorium annually, including classical, rock and pop concerts, ballet, opera, film screenings with live orchestral accompaniment, sports, awards ceremonies, school and community events, and charity performances and banquets. A further 400 events are held each year in

3844-691: The Te Deum and Jubilate , and an anthem , Out of the Deep . His secular compositions included a cantata , L'Invocazione all'armonia , and Melody for the Violin , which Yehudi Menuhin later described as "pleasant music without presumption". In August 1859, Albert fell seriously ill with stomach cramps. His steadily worsening medical condition led to a sense of despair; the biographer Robert Rhodes James describes Albert as having lost "the will to live". Albert later had an accidental brush with death during

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3968-721: The Trent Affair —the forcible removal of Confederate envoys from a British ship, the RMS Trent , by Union forces during the American Civil War —threatened war between the United States and Britain. The British government prepared an ultimatum and readied a military response. Albert was gravely ill but intervened to defuse the crisis. In a few hours, he revised the British demands in a manner that allowed

4092-507: The Blue Room at Windsor Castle , in the presence of the Queen and five of their nine children. He was 42 years old. The contemporary diagnosis was typhoid fever, but modern writers have pointed out that Albert's ongoing stomach pain, which left him ill for at least two years before his death, may indicate that a chronic disease such as Crohn's disease , kidney failure or abdominal cancer

4216-483: The British Parliament , but he actively disagreed with the interventionist foreign policy pursued during Lord Palmerston 's tenure as Foreign Secretary . Albert died in 1861 at the age of 42, devastating Victoria so much that she entered into a deep state of mourning and wore black for the rest of her life. On her death in 1901, their eldest son succeeded as Edward VII , the first British monarch of

4340-754: The Central Hall of Arts and Sciences , but the name was changed to the Royal Albert Hall of Arts and Sciences by Queen Victoria upon laying the Hall's foundation stone in 1867, in memory of her husband, Prince Albert , who had died six years earlier. It forms the practical part of a memorial to the Prince Consort; the decorative part is the Albert Memorial directly to the north in Kensington Gardens , now separated from

4464-630: The Duchess of Kent , was the sister of both Albert's father—the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha—and King Leopold. Leopold arranged for his sister, Victoria's mother, to invite the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his two sons to visit her in May 1836, with the purpose of meeting Victoria. William IV, however, disapproved of any match with the Coburgs, and instead favoured the suit of Prince Alexander , second son of

4588-458: The House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , named after the ducal house to which Albert belonged. Prince Albert was born on 26 August 1819 at Schloss Rosenau , near Coburg , Germany, the second son of Ernest III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld , and his first wife, Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg . His first cousin and future wife, Victoria , had been born earlier in the same year with the assistance of

4712-473: The Isle of Wight as a private residence for their growing family. Over the next few years a house modelled in the style of an Italianate villa was built to the designs of Albert and Thomas Cubitt . Albert laid out the grounds, and improved the estate and farm. Albert managed and improved the other royal estates; his model farm at Windsor ( Shaw Farm ) was admired by his biographers, and under his stewardship

4836-685: The Lincoln administration to surrender the Confederate commissioners who had been seized from the Trent and to issue a public apology to London without losing face. The key idea, based on a suggestion from The Times , was to give Washington the opportunity to deny that it had officially authorised the seizure and thereby to apologise for the captain's mistake. On 9 December, one of Albert's doctors, William Jenner , diagnosed him with typhoid fever. Albert died at 10:50 p.m. on 14 December 1861 in

4960-466: The Prince of Orange . Victoria was well aware of the various matrimonial plans and critically appraised a parade of eligible princes. She wrote, "[Albert] is extremely handsome; his hair is about the same colour as mine; his eyes are large and blue, and he has a beautiful nose and a very sweet mouth with fine teeth; but the charm of his countenance is his expression, which is most delightful." Alexander, on

5084-543: The Queen's Hall in an air raid , the Hall was chosen as the new venue for the Proms. In 1944 with increased danger to the Hall, part of the Proms season was held in the Bedford Corn Exchange . Following the end of World War II the Proms continued being held in the Hall and have done so annually every summer since. The event was founded in 1895, and now each season consists of over 70 concerts, in addition to

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5208-459: The Royal Albert Hall and the Victoria and Albert Museum . The area was referred to as " Albertopolis " by sceptics. In 1852, John Camden Neild , an eccentric miser, left Victoria an unexpected legacy, which Albert used to obtain the freehold of Balmoral. As usual, he embarked on an extensive programme of improvements. The same year, he was appointed to several of the offices left vacant by

5332-626: The Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 , and had to fight for every stage of the project. In the House of Lords , Lord Brougham fulminated against the proposal to hold the exhibition in Hyde Park . Opponents of the exhibition prophesied that foreign rogues and revolutionists would overrun England, subvert the morals of the people, and destroy their faith. Albert thought such talk absurd and quietly persevered, trusting always that British manufacturing would benefit from exposure to

5456-600: The Russian and Ottoman empires . Palmerston was more bellicose, and favoured a policy that would prevent further Russian expansion. Palmerston was manoeuvred out of the cabinet in December 1853, but at about the same time a Russian fleet attacked the Ottoman fleet at anchor at Sinop . The London press depicted the attack as a criminal massacre, and Palmerston's popularity surged as Albert's fell. Within two weeks, Palmerston

5580-635: The University of Bonn , where he studied law, political economy, philosophy and the history of art. He played music and he excelled at sport, especially fencing and riding. His tutors at Bonn included the philosopher Fichte and the poet Schlegel . The idea of marriage between Albert and his first cousin Victoria was first documented in an 1821 letter from his paternal grandmother, the Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, who said that he

5704-524: The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom differenced by a white three-point label with a red cross in the centre, quartered with his ancestral arms of Saxony . They are blazoned : "Quarterly, 1st and 4th, the Royal Arms, with overall a label of three points Argent charged on the centre with cross Gules ; 2nd and 3rd, Barry of ten Or and Sable , a crown of rue in bend Vert ". The arms are unusual, being described by S. T. Aveling as

5828-647: The "House Dragon", and manoeuvred to dislodge the Baroness from her position. Within two months of the marriage, Victoria was pregnant. Albert started to take on public roles; he became President of the Society for the Extinction of Slavery (slavery was still lawful in most parts of the world beyond the British Empire); and helped Victoria privately with her government paperwork. In June 1840, while on

5952-597: The 'Einstein Meeting' at the hall for the Council for Assisting Refugee Academics, a British charity. In 1936, the Hall was the scene of a giant rally celebrating the British Empire on the occasion of the centenary of Joseph Chamberlain 's birth. In October 1942, the Hall suffered minor damage during World War II bombing, but in general was left mostly untouched as German pilots used the distinctive structure as

6076-613: The Allied strategy after the Tsar decided to fight a purely defensive war. Early British optimism soon faded as the press reported that British troops were ill-equipped and mismanaged by aged generals using out-of-date tactics and strategy. The conflict dragged on as the Russians were as poorly prepared as their opponents. The Prime Minister, Lord Aberdeen , resigned, and Palmerston succeeded him. A negotiated settlement eventually put an end to

6200-543: The Curragh, the Prince of Wales was introduced by his fellow officers to Nellie Clifden , an Irish actress. By November, Victoria and Albert had returned to Windsor, and the Prince of Wales had returned to Cambridge, where he was a student. Two of Albert's young cousins, King Pedro V of Portugal and his brother Ferdinand , died of typhoid fever within five days of each other in early November. On top of that news, Albert

6324-601: The Duchess of Kent, died in March 1861, and Victoria was grief-stricken. Albert took on most of the Queen's duties despite his continuing chronic stomach trouble. The last public event over which he presided was the opening of the Royal Horticultural Gardens on 5 June 1861. In August, Victoria and Albert visited the Curragh Camp , Ireland, where the Prince of Wales was attending army manoeuvres. At

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6448-509: The Elder 's Apollo and Diana and Fra Angelico 's St Peter Martyr —and contemporary pieces from Franz Xaver Winterhalter and Edwin Landseer . Ludwig Gruner , of Dresden, assisted Albert in buying artworks of the highest quality. Albert and Victoria were shot at again on both 29 and 30 May 1842, but were unhurt. The culprit, John Francis, was detained and condemned to death, although he

6572-648: The Hall again after shooting cannons, nailing things to the stage, and having a man in a gorilla suit roam the audience. At one point, Rick Wright went to the pipe organ and began to play "The End of the Beginning", the final part of "Saucerful of Secrets", joined by the brass section of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (led by the conductor, Norman Smith) and the ladies of the Ealing Central Amateur Choir. A portion of

6696-492: The Hall by Kensington Gore . In 1851 the Great Exhibition , organised by Prince Albert, the Prince Consort , was held in Hyde Park , London. The Exhibition was a success and led Prince Albert to propose the creation of a group of permanent facilities for the public benefit, which came to be known as Albertopolis . The Exhibition's Royal Commission bought Gore House , but it was slow to act, and in 1861 Prince Albert died without having seen his ideas come to fruition. However,

6820-430: The Hall contained a special system by which thousands of gas jets were lit within ten seconds. Though it was demonstrated as early as 1873 in the Hall, full electric lighting was not installed until 1888. During an early trial when a partial installation was made, one disgruntled patron wrote to The Times , declaring it to be "a very ghastly and unpleasant innovation". In May 1877, Richard Wagner himself conducted

6944-542: The Hall hosted the 100th-anniversary performance of the Royal Variety Performance , attended by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh , with boy-band One Direction among the performers. The Royal Variety Performance has since returned to the Hall in 2015 and every year since 2021. In 2017 the Hall hosted the 70th British Academy Film Awards , often referred to as the BAFTAs , for

7068-499: The Hall hosted the annual National Television Awards all of which were hosted by Sir Trevor McDonald , and the Classic Brit Awards were hosted annually at the Hall from 2000 to 2013, and again in 2018. The Institute of Directors ' Annual Convention was synonymous with the Hall for over 50 years, taking place most years between 1961 and 2016. The Royal Choral Society is the longest-running regular performance at

7192-473: The Hall is 135 ft (41 m) high. The Hall was originally designed with a capacity for 8,000 people and has accommodated as many as 12,000 (although present-day safety restrictions mean the maximum permitted capacity is now 5,272 including standing in the Gallery). Around the outside of the building is 800-foot–long terracotta mosaic frieze, depicting "The Triumph of Arts and Sciences", in reference to

7316-570: The Hall on 4 August 1874, after large quantities of cask wine were found in the cellars. A series of lunches were held to publicise the wines, and General Henry Scott proposed a co-operative company to buy and sell wines. In 1906, Elsie Fogerty founded the Central School of Speech and Drama at the Hall, using its West Theatre, now the Elgar Room, as the school's theatre. The school moved to Swiss Cottage in north London in 1957. Whilst

7440-463: The Hall staged the 25th-anniversary performance of Andrew Lloyd Webber 's The Phantom of the Opera , which was broadcast live to cinemas across the world and filmed for DVD . Lloyd Webber, the original London cast including Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford , and four previous actors of the titular character, among others, were in attendance – Brightman and the previous Phantoms (aside from Crawford) performed an encore. On 19 November 2012,

7564-442: The Hall was that it reminded her of the British constitution ". The composer, organist, and choir conductor William Carter founded and directed a choir specifically for the opening of Royal Albert Hall. In the concert that followed, the Hall's acoustic problems immediately became apparent. Engineers first tried to remove the strong echo by suspending a canvas awning below the dome. This helped and also sheltered concert-goers from

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7688-427: The Hall's dedication. Proceeding counter-clockwise from the north side the sixteen subjects of the frieze are: Above the frieze is an inscription in 12-inch-high (30 cm) terracotta letters that combine historical fact and Biblical quotations: This hall was erected for the advancement of the arts and sciences and works of industry of all nations in fulfilment of the intention of Albert Prince Consort. The site

7812-407: The Hall, having given its first performance as the Royal Albert Hall Choral Society on 8 May 1872. From 1876, it established the annual Good Friday performance of Handel's Messiah . The BBC Sir Henry Wood Promenade Concerts, known as " The Proms ", is a popular annual eight-week summer season of daily classical music concerts and other events at the Hall. In 1941, following the destruction of

7936-447: The Hall, whilst since the early 1970s promoter Raymond Gubbay has brought a range of events to the Hall including opera, ballet and classical music. Some events include classical and rock concerts, conferences, banquets, ballroom dancing, poetry recitals, educational talks, motor shows, ballet, opera, film screenings and circus shows. It has hosted many sporting events, including boxing, squash, table tennis, basketball, wrestling including

8060-436: The Prince and his eldest son were other than deeply affectionate". Philip Magnus wrote in his biography of Albert's eldest son that Albert "tried to treat his children as equals; and they were able to penetrate his stiffness and reserve because they realised instinctively not only that he loved them but that he enjoyed and needed their company". Albert was a talented amateur musician and composer. For his wedding, he composed

8184-528: The Prince and home affairs: His influence over the Queen was on the whole liberal; he greatly admired Peel, was a strong free-trader, and took more interest in scientific and commercial progress, and less in sport and fashion than was at all popular in the best society. In 1847, Albert was elected Chancellor of the University of Cambridge after a close contest with the Earl of Powis . Albert used his position as chancellor to campaign successfully for reformed and more modern university curricula by expanding

8308-410: The Prince of Wales failed at his lessons, Albert caned him. Corporal punishment was common at the time, and was not thought unduly harsh. Albert's biographer Roger Fulford wrote that the relationships between the family members were "friendly, affectionate and normal ... there is no evidence either in the Royal Archives or in the printed authorities to justify the belief that the relations between

8432-427: The Queen visited a few weeks beforehand to inspect. The official opening ceremony of the Hall was on 29 March 1871. This had originally been scheduled for 1 May, the twentieth anniversary of the opening of the Great Exhibition, but was brought forward at the request of Queen Victoria. A welcoming speech was given by Edward, the Prince of Wales because the Queen was too overcome to speak; "her only recorded comment on

8556-415: The RAH: Saltimbanco (1996, 1997 and 2003), Alegría (1998, 1999, 2006 and 2007), Dralion (2004 and 2005), Varekai (2008 and 2010), Quidam (2009 and 2014), Totem (2011, 2012 and 2019), Koozå (2013 and 2015), Amaluna (2016 and 2017), OVO (2018), Luzia (2020 and 2022), Kurios (2023), Alegría: In a New Light (2024) and Corteo (2025). Alegria's 2024 return was a revamped and updated version of

8680-413: The age of 30 in 1831. The following year, their father married his niece Princess Marie of Württemberg ; their marriage was not close, however, and Marie had little—if any—impact on her stepsons' lives. The brothers were educated privately at home by Christoph Florschütz and later studied in Brussels , where Adolphe Quetelet was one of their tutors. Like many other German princes, Albert attended

8804-428: The architecture and engineering firm BDP without disrupting events. These projects included improved ventilation to the auditorium, more bars and restaurants, improved seating, better technical facilities, and improved backstage areas. Internally, the Circle seating was rebuilt during June 1996 to provide more legroom, better access, and improved sightlines. The largest project of the ongoing renovation and development

8928-647: The best products of foreign countries. Victoria opened the exhibition on 1 May 1851 in a specially designed and built glass building known as the Crystal Palace . It proved a colossal success. A surplus of £180,000 was used to purchase land in South Kensington on which to establish educational and cultural institutions, including the Natural History Museum , Science Museum , Imperial College London and what would later be named

9052-468: The building. This work followed the summer Proms season during which temperatures were unusually high. Further heatwaves led to a rebuild of the Rausing Circle level in 2021 with air-cooling ventilation installed, significantly decreasing heat there during hot weather. In 2017 work began on a two-story 11,000-square-foot (1,000 m ) basement extension for use as backstage and archival space to

9176-409: The claim that he introduced Christmas trees to Britain, are dismissed by scholars. Recent biographers such as Stanley Weintraub portray Albert as a figure in a tragic romance who died too soon and was mourned by his lover for a lifetime. In the 2009 film The Young Victoria , Albert, played by Rupert Friend , is made into a heroic character. In the fictionalised depiction of the 1840 shooting, he

9300-443: The concert. Proms concert-goers, particularly those who stand, are sometimes described as "Promenaders", but are most commonly referred to as "Prommers". Cirque du Soleil has performed annually, with a show being staged at the start of most years since 1996. Cirque has had to adapt many of their touring shows to perform at the venue, modifying the set, usually built for arenas or big top tents instead. The following shows have played

9424-468: The country and across the British Empire . The most notable are the Royal Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial in London. The plethora of memorials erected to Albert became so great that Charles Dickens told a friend that he sought an "inaccessible cave" to escape from them. After Albert's death, Victoria withdrew from public life and her seclusion eroded some of Albert's work in attempting to remodel

9548-479: The death of the Duke of Wellington , including the mastership of Trinity House and the colonelcy of the Grenadier Guards . With Wellington's death, Albert was able to propose and campaign for modernisation of the army, which was long overdue. Thinking that the military was unready for war and that Christian rule was preferable to Islamic rule, Albert counselled a diplomatic solution to conflict between

9672-416: The departure of his eldest daughter for Prussia when she married her fiancé at the beginning of 1858, and was disappointed that his eldest son, the Prince of Wales , did not respond well to the intense educational programme that Albert had designed for him. At the age of seven, the Prince of Wales was expected to take six hours of instruction, including an hour of German and an hour of French every day. When

9796-514: The earth is Thine. The wise and their works are in the hand of God. Glory be to God on high and on earth peace. Below the Arena floor there is room for two 4,000 gallon water tanks, which are used for shows that flood the arena like Madame Butterfly . The Hall has been affectionately titled "The Nation's Village Hall". The first concert was Arthur Sullivan 's cantata On Shore and Sea , performed on 1 May 1871. Many events are promoted by

9920-503: The event of Victoria's death before their child reached the age of majority. Their first child, Victoria , named after her mother, was born in November. Eight other children would follow over the next seventeen years. All nine children survived to adulthood, which was remarkable for the era; biographer Hermione Hobhouse credited the healthy running of the nursery on Albert's "enlightened influence". In early 1841, he successfully removed

10044-528: The first sumo wrestling tournament to be held in London as well as UFC 38 (the first UFC event to be held in the UK), tennis, and even a marathon. Tennis was first played at the Hall in March 1970, and the ATP Champions Tour Masters was played annually from 1997 to 2021. The hall first hosted boxing in 1918, when it hosted a tournament between British and American servicemen. There was

10168-476: The first half of each of the eight concerts which made up the Grand Wagner Festival. After his turn with the baton, he handed it over to conductor Hans Richter and sat in a large armchair on the corner of the stage for the rest of each concert. Wagner's wife Cosima , the daughter of Hungarian virtuoso pianist and composer Franz Liszt , was among the audience. The Wine Society was founded at

10292-582: The first music DVD to surpass sales of one million in the USA since Eagles ' Farewell 1 Tour-Live from Melbourne in 2005 ( Garth Brooks ' The Ultimate Hits sold one million copies in 2007, but was a CD/DVD combination). The live version of " Set Fire to the Rain " taken from her performance won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards in 2013. On 2 October 2011,

10416-708: The first time in 20 years, replacing the Royal Opera House at which the event had been held since 2008. The BAFTAs were held regularly at the venue until moving to the Royal Festival Hall in 2023. The Olivier Awards also moved to the Albert Hall in 2017 and remain there as of 2024. Former regular events include Classical Spectacular , a Raymond Gubbay production, which performed at the Hall from 1989 to 2022. It combined popular classical music, lights and special effects. Between 1996 and 2008,

10540-635: The houses of the very rich. Albert's funeral was held on 23 December 1861 at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle . His body was temporarily entombed in the chapel's Royal Vault. A year after his death, his remains were deposited at the Royal Mausoleum, Frogmore , which remained incomplete until 1871. The sarcophagus, in which both he and Victoria were eventually laid, was carved from the largest block of granite that had ever been quarried in Britain. Despite Albert's request for no effigies of him to be raised, many public monuments were erected all over

10664-550: The ideas of Gottfried Semper while he was working at the South Kensington Museum . The recently opened Cirque d'Hiver in Paris was seen in the contemporary press as the design to outdo. The Hall was constructed mainly of Fareham Red brick, with terra cotta block decoration made by Gibbs and Canning of Tamworth . The dome (designed by Rowland Mason Ordish ) was made of wrought iron and glazed. There

10788-604: The lease from the owner, the Earl Fife . In May the following year, Albert leased Balmoral, which he had never visited. In September 1848 he, his wife and their older children went there for the first time. They came to relish the privacy it afforded. Revolutions spread throughout Europe in 1848 as a result of a widespread economic crisis. Throughout the year, Victoria and Albert complained about Foreign Secretary Palmerston 's independent foreign policy, which they believed further destabilised Continental European powers. Albert

10912-565: The match would take place. Victoria came to the throne on 20 June 1837, aged 18. Her letters of the time show interest in Albert's education for the role he would have to play, although she resisted attempts to rush her into marriage. In the winter of 1838–39, the prince visited Italy, accompanied by the Coburg family's confidential adviser, Baron Stockmar . Albert returned to the United Kingdom with Ernest in October 1839 to visit Victoria, with

11036-593: The monarchy as a national institution by setting a moral, if not political, example. Albert is credited with introducing the principle that the British royal family should remain above politics. Before his marriage to Victoria, she supported the Whigs . For example, early in her reign, Victoria had managed to thwart the formation of a Tory government by Sir Robert Peel by refusing to accept substitutions that Peel wanted to make among her ladies-in-waiting. Albert showed

11160-581: The need for better schooling. A collection of his speeches was published in 1857. Recognised as a supporter of education and technological progress, he was invited to speak at scientific meetings, such as the memorable address he delivered as president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science when it met at Aberdeen in 1859. His espousal of science met with clerical opposition; he and Palmerston unsuccessfully recommended

11284-429: The non-auditorium spaces. Over its 153-year history, the hall has hosted people from various fields, including meetings held by suffragettes , speeches from Winston Churchill , Charles de Gaulle , and Albert Einstein , fights by Lennox Lewis , exhibition bouts by Muhammad Ali , and concerts from regular performers at the venue such as Eric Clapton and Shirley Bassey . The hall was originally to have been called

11408-472: The nursery from Lehzen's pervasive control, and in September 1842, Lehzen left Britain permanently—much to Albert's relief. After the 1841 general election , Melbourne was replaced as prime minister by Sir Robert Peel , who appointed Albert chairman of the Royal Commission in charge of redecorating the new Palace of Westminster . The Palace had burned down seven years before , and was being rebuilt. As

11532-522: The objective of settling the marriage. Albert and Victoria felt mutual affection and the Queen proposed to him on 15 October 1839. Victoria's intention to marry was declared formally to the Privy Council on 23 November, and the couple married on 10 February 1840 at the Chapel Royal , St James's Palace . Just before the marriage, Albert was naturalised by an Act of Parliament, and granted

11656-529: The original, titled Alegria: In a New Light . Classic FM hold a popular concert twice a year with a regularly changing lineup. The concert in September 2013 had to be cancelled due to a fire alert in the Hall's basement leading to an evacuation of the building The Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance is held annually the day before Remembrance Sunday . Albert, Prince Consort Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861)

11780-405: The other hand, she described as "very plain". Victoria wrote to her uncle Leopold to thank him "for the prospect of great happiness you have contributed to give me, in the person of dear Albert ... He possesses every quality that could be desired to render me perfectly happy." Although the parties did not undertake a formal engagement, both the family and their retainers widely assumed that

11904-528: The pipe organ recording is included on Pink Floyd's album The Endless River . In 1983, Siouxsie and the Banshees performed two sold out concerts at the hall at the time their line up featured the Cure 's guitarist Robert Smith . The shows were recorded and filmed for the live album and DVD Nocturne . On 22 September 2011, Adele performed a one-night-only concert as part of her tour . The concert

12028-658: The revenues of the Duchy of Cornwall —the hereditary property of the Prince of Wales—steadily increased. Unlike many landowners who approved of child labour and opposed Peel's repeal of the Corn Laws , Albert supported moves to raise working ages and free up trade. In 1846, Albert was rebuked by Lord George Bentinck when he attended the debate on the Corn Laws in the House of Commons to give tacit support to Peel. During Peel's premiership, Albert's authority behind, or beside,

12152-411: The rim chequy Gules and Argent" for Mark . 2. "Out of a coronet Or, two buffalo horns Argent, attached to the outer edge of five branches fesswise each with three linden leaves Vert" for Thuringia . 3. "Out of a coronet Or, a pyramidal chapeau charged with the arms of Saxony ensigned by a plume of peacock feathers Proper out of a coronet also Or" for Saxony . 4. "A bearded man in profile couped below

12276-909: The same midwife, Charlotte von Siebold . He was baptised into the Lutheran Evangelical Church on 19 September 1819 in the Marble Hall at Schloss Rosenau, with water taken from the local river, the Itz . His godparents were his paternal grandmother, the Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld ; his maternal grandfather, the Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg ; the Emperor of Austria ; the Duke of Teschen ; and Emanuel, Count of Mensdorff-Pouilly . In 1825, Albert's great-uncle, Frederick IV, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg , died, which led to

12400-740: The school was based at the Royal Albert Hall, students who graduated from its classes included Judi Dench , Vanessa Redgrave , Lynn Redgrave , Harold Pinter , Laurence Olivier and Peggy Ashcroft . In 1911, Russian pianist and composer Sergei Rachmaninoff performed as a part of the London Ballad Concert. The recital included his ' Prelude in C-sharp minor ' and 'Elegie in E-flat minor' (both from Morceaux de Fantaisie ). In 1933, German physicist Albert Einstein led

12524-484: The shoulders clothed paly Argent and Gules, the pointed coronet similarly paly terminating in a plume of three peacock feathers" for Meissen . 5. "A demi griffin displayed Or, winged Sable, collared and langued Gules" for Jülich . 6. "Out of a coronet Or, a panache of peacock feathers Proper" for Berg . The supporters were the crowned lion of England and the unicorn of Scotland (as in the Royal Arms) charged on

12648-662: The south-west quadrant of the building. The project is nicknamed the "Great Excavation", in reference to the Great Exhibition of 1851. A new archive space opened in the extension on 12 October 2023. In 2018 a Walk of Fame was unveiled at the Hall, with the first eleven recipients of a star including the Suffragettes (who held meetings at the Hall), Winston Churchill and Albert Einstein (both of whom delivered speeches here), Muhammad Ali (who had exhibition events at

12772-410: The style of Royal Highness by an Order in Council . Initially Albert was not popular with the British public; he was perceived to be from an impoverished and undistinguished minor state, barely larger than a small English county. The British prime minister, Lord Melbourne , advised the Queen against granting her husband the title of " King Consort "; Parliament also objected to Albert being created

12896-625: The subjects taught beyond the traditional mathematics and classics to include modern history and the natural sciences. Albert gained public acclaim when he expressed paternalistic yet well-meaning and philanthropic views. In an 1848 speech to the Society for the Improvement of the Condition of the Labouring Classes , of which he was president, he expressed his "sympathy and interest for that class of our community who have most of

13020-433: The sun, but the problem was not solved: it used to be jokingly said the Hall was "the only place where a British composer could be sure of hearing his work twice". In July 1871, French organist Camille Saint-Saëns performed Church Scene from Faust by Charles Gounod ; The Orchestra described his performance as "an exceptional and distinguished performer ... the effect was most marvellous." Initially lit by gas ,

13144-711: The throne became more apparent. He had access to all the Queen's papers, was drafting her correspondence and was present when she met her ministers; he would even see them alone in her absence. The clerk of the Privy Council, Charles Greville , wrote of him: "He is King to all intents and purposes." In 1847, Victoria and Albert spent a rainy holiday in the west of Scotland at Loch Laggan , but heard from their doctor, Sir James Clark , that Clark's son had enjoyed dry, sunny days farther east at Balmoral Castle . The tenant of Balmoral, Sir Robert Gordon , died suddenly in early October, and Albert began negotiations to take over

13268-401: The toil and fewest of the enjoyments of this world". It was the "duty of those who, under the blessings of Divine Providence, enjoy station, wealth, and education" to assist those less fortunate than themselves. His progressive and relatively liberal ideas were expressed by his support of emancipation, technological progress, science education, the ideas of Charles Darwin , and the welfare of

13392-491: The war by the March 1856 Treaty of Paris . During the war, Albert arranged the marriage of his fourteen-year-old daughter, Victoria , to Prince Frederick William of Prussia , but Albert delayed the marriage until Victoria was seventeen. Albert hoped that his daughter and son-in-law would be a liberalising influence in the enlarging but very conservative Prussian state. Albert promoted many public educational institutions. Chiefly at meetings in connection with them, he spoke of

13516-452: The working classes. Albert led reforms in university education, welfare and the royal finances, and supported the campaign against slavery. He also had a special interest in applying science and art to manufacturing industry. The Great Exhibition of 1851 arose from the annual exhibitions of the Society of Arts , of which Albert was president from 1843, and owed most of its success to his efforts to promote it. Albert served as president of

13640-521: Was "the pendant to the pretty cousin". By 1836, this idea had also arisen in the mind of their ambitious uncle Leopold , who had been King of the Belgians since 1831. At this time, Victoria was the heir presumptive to the British throne. Her father, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn , the fourth son of King George III , had died when she was an infant, and her elderly uncle, King William IV , had no surviving legitimate children. Her mother,

13764-504: Was a trial assembly of the dome's iron framework in Manchester ; then it was taken apart again and transported to London by horse and cart. When the time came for the supporting structure to be removed from the dome after reassembly in situ , only volunteers remained on site in case the structure collapsed. It did drop – but only by five-sixteenths of an inch (7.9 mm). The Hall was scheduled to be completed by Christmas Day 1870, and

13888-773: Was appointed Creative Director of National Youth Choir in Spring 2023, succeeding Ben Parry , who held the position from 2012 to 2022. National Youth Choir operates its own record label, National Youth Choir Recordings (NYCR), which releases music recorded by its choirs via Spotify , Apple Music , YouTube Music and other major music streaming services . The label publishes new recordings each month, which are regularly featured on playlists curated by each streaming platform's editorial team, as well as being broadcast on national radio stations, including BBC Radio 3 , Classic FM and Scala . National Youth Choir also partnered with NMC Recordings to produce its annual "Young Composers" albums:

14012-429: Was authorised and supervised by Queen Victoria, and her influence shows in its pages. Nevertheless, it is an accurate and exhaustive account. Lytton Strachey 's Queen Victoria (1921) was more critical, but it was discredited in part by mid-20th-century biographers such as Hector Bolitho and Roger Fulford , who, unlike Strachey, had access to Victoria's journal and letters. Popular myths about Prince Albert, such as

14136-597: Was broadcast on television live in colour for the first time, and from 1969 to 1988 the Miss World contest was staged in the venue. From 1996 until 2004, the Hall underwent a programme of renovation and development supported by a £20 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund and £20m from Arts Council England to enable it to meet the demands of the next century of events and performances. Thirty "discreet projects" were designed and supervised by

14260-456: Was concerned for many of his royal relatives, a number of whom were deposed by revolutionaries. He and Victoria, who gave birth to their daughter Louise during that year, spent some time away from London in the relative safety of Osborne . Although there were sporadic demonstrations in England, no effective revolutionary action took place. According to historian G. M. Trevelyan , regarding

14384-422: Was filmed for DVD and screened at cinemas in 26 cities around the world. Her performance debuted at number one in the United States with 96,000 copies sold, the highest one-week tally for a music DVD in four years. After one week, it became the best-selling music DVD of 2011. As of 28 November 2012, it had surpassed sales of one million copies in the United States and sales of three million copies worldwide and makes

14508-818: Was founded in 1983 by Carl Browning, with its five choirs have a membership of over 900 young singers aged 9 to 25 from across the UK. The NYC regularly gives performances at venues and festivals such as the Royal Albert Hall , the Royal Festival Hall , The Glasshouse, Gateshead , the Royal Concert Hall Nottingham , Edinburgh Festival, Snape Proms and the BBC Proms as well as at events of national significance. High-profile international artists NYC has worked with range from Daniel Barenboim to Kylie Minogue , along with top choirs including The Sixteen , Tenebrae , The Tallis Scholars , BBC Singers and many others. The music it creates and performs encompasses

14632-493: Was informed that gossip was spreading in gentlemen's clubs and the foreign press that the Prince of Wales was involved with Nellie Clifden. Albert and Victoria were horrified by their son's indiscretion and feared blackmail, scandal or pregnancy. Although Albert was ill and at a low ebb, he travelled to Cambridge to see the Prince of Wales on 25 November and discuss the indiscreet affair. In his final weeks, Albert suffered from pains in his back and legs. Also in November 1861,

14756-478: Was later reprieved. Some of the couple's early unpopularity came about because of their stiffness and adherence to protocol in public, though in private the couple were more easy-going. In early 1844, Victoria and Albert were apart for the first time since their marriage when he returned to Coburg on the death of his father. By 1844, Albert had managed to modernise the royal finances and, through various economies, had sufficient capital to purchase Osborne House on

14880-465: Was purchased with the proceeds of the Great Exhibition of the year MDCCCLI . The first stone of the Hall was laid by Her Majesty Queen Victoria on the twentieth day of May MDCCCLXVII and it was opened by Her Majesty the Twenty Ninth of March in the year MDCCCLXXI . Thine O Lord is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty. For all that is in the heaven and in

15004-569: Was re-appointed a minister. As public outrage at the Russian action continued, false rumours circulated that Albert had been arrested for treason and was being held prisoner in the Tower of London . By March 1854, Britain and Russia were embroiled in the Crimean War . Albert devised a master plan for winning the war by laying siege to Sevastopol while starving Russia economically, which became

15128-469: Was the building of a new south porch – door 12, accommodating a first-floor restaurant, new ground floor box office and subterranean loading bay. Although the exterior of the building was largely unchanged, the south steps leading down to Prince Consort Road were demolished to allow construction of underground vehicle access and a loading bay with accommodation for three HGVs carrying all the equipment brought by shows. The steps were then reconstructed around

15252-454: Was the cause of death. The Queen's grief was overwhelming, and the tepid feelings that the public had for Albert were replaced by sympathy. The widowed Victoria never recovered from Albert's death; she entered into a deep state of mourning and wore black for the rest of her life. Albert's rooms in all his houses were kept as they had been even with hot water brought in the morning and linen and towels changed daily. Such practices were common in

15376-554: Was the husband of Queen Victoria . As such, he was consort of the British monarch from their marriage on 10 February 1840 until his death in 1861. Victoria granted him the title Prince Consort in 1857. Albert was born in the Saxon duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld to a family connected to many of Europe's ruling monarchs. At the age of 20, he married Victoria, his first cousin, with whom he had nine children. Initially, he felt constrained by his role as consort, which did not afford him power or responsibilities. He gradually developed

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