A little help from their friends

Shake it up, baby! Prague Proms gets off to its most rousing start yet with two nights devoted to The Beatles this year (June 26 and 27). Leading the Czech National Symphony Orchestra from the podium will be none other than Carl Davis, the noted film and theater composer who collaborated with Paul McCartney on his 1991 Liverpool Oratorio.

"I can remember the first time I ever heard 'A Hard Day's Night,' " says Davis, an American who moved to London in 1960. "I was sitting in a hot bath on a Saturday morning, and I remember being incredibly excited. The music was so rhythmic, so fresh - you could always tell The Beatles' songs; their music was so distinctive."

The genesis of the Oratorio collaboration was a query from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, which was making plans for a 150th birthday celebration in 1991. Did Davis have any ideas for a special event to mark the occasion? "I always thought a lot of The Beatles' songs had classical affinities," he says. "So it just popped out of my mouth: What about something with McCartney?"

The collaboration faltered at first, with Davis and McCartney trading ideas they had developed separately and not getting anywhere. "Then we began to sit together and write together, and it became something really quite wonderful," Davis recalls. "I gained some valuable insights into his work. One is that he conceives of words and music together. When you hear a McCartney song, it's not that he found a tune and then put words to it. The whole thing develops together, in a piece."

When they had completed the Oratorio, Davis learned something else. "McCartney told me, 'There were never any scores for Beatles music. We composed directly onto the recording.' " But that wouldn't do for a classical work. "I told him, 'This isn't just you and a guitar; you require an orchestra. Everybody needs music, and it all has to be written out very precisely.' So we got all that, and the piece went on to have about 100 performances, 30 of which I conducted in such far-flung places as Tokyo, Munich and New York."

At Prague Spring in 1993. Davis was also in town for Prague Proms last summer, conducting the Czech National Symphony Orchestra in "James Bond Night."

For this year's Beatles program, Davis will be drawing on the group's entire oeuvre, from early hits like "She Loves You" to late classics like "All You Need Is Love." There's a "Liverpool Day" medley (of "Penny Lane" and "Strawberry Fields"), songs from the films (A Hard Day's Night and Help!) and even an orchestral version of "Twist and Shout."

"When The Beatles were performing live, even in their Hamburg days, they always closed their concert with 'Twist and Shout,' " Davis says. "So I really wanted to include that."

Davis is known for some flamboyant gestures of his own; he's conducted in a Union Jack suit and a coat of gold lamé. For this appearance, he's trying to find a Sgt. Pepper's costume, which would set the right tone.

"I wanted to cover every aspect and all the different moods of The Beatles' music, but this isn't a lecture," Davis says. "I also didn't want it to be an evening by a tribute band. We're just trying to bring the flavor of their time. I perceive it as a sing-along that people can join in if they want to."

The rest of this year's program offers something for every taste. For serious classical music fans, there are orchestral nights of Wagner and Stravinsky (July 2), Mahler (July 7) and Verdi (July 22). A British trio will play chamber music at the Czech Music Museum (July 1), and the Prague Brass Ensemble joins organist Jan Kalfus at St. Barbara's Cathedral in Kutná Hora (July 4).

In a lighter vein, Italian musician Carlo Torlontano is bringing a giant alphorn for Alpine Night (July 14), perennial favorite Hollywood Night gets muscular with music from films such as Rocky and Conan the Barbarian (July 11) and "Jazz Meets the Symphony" with a program of composers ranging from Claude Debussy to Dizzy Gillespie (July 17).

And then there's straight-up jazz, which has been an integral and popular component of Prague Proms since it started in 2005. Half a dozen nights of mostly local players are scheduled at the Mercedes Benz Forum, Reduta and Jazz Dock, highlighted by two nights of "smooth jazz" by American sax player Eric Marienthal (Jazz Dock, July 4 and 5).

Like Prague Spring, Prague Proms starts its advertising and sales program months in advance, so the popular concerts tend to sell out early. If cool pops on a hot summer evening sounds refreshing, don't wait - get your tickets now.

Frank Kuznik can be reached at
fkuznik@praguepost.com