I've just listened to it this morning in the iPlayer, PW, and it was like seeing an Old Master cleaned, restored, and redisplayed clear of extraneous nonsense around it. 

BTW the iPlayer presentation of Part Two of that Prom begins with some of Norrington's pre-Prom Talk at the RCM about the work... in which he mentioned that when Richter gave the premiere (announcing it as the "greatest modern symphony" to the orchestra as he began rehearsals) Elgar was called to the platform after each movement, and showered with applause

As you say, the discussion over at TOP strongly resembles:


except that the arguments are less focussed and more vitriolic   Poor Bryn has slipped into the role of Fozzy Bear, and is taking a large amount of the flack

Worse still, the programme notes for the Elgar specifically mentioned the applause between movements at the premiere. No-one at TOP has yet responded to my suggestion that we re-introduce other early 20th century practices into modern life 

Enjoyable concert, and the late Prom made a perfect sorbet to cleanse the aural palate after those horrible nasty late Romantic excesses.

I've no time to read the same old arguments over again on the other boards as I'm trying to complete enough of this week's work quota to take tomorrow off so I can make a day trip to see Mr Sudbin.

I find this applause tiresome and the type of thing we got on the first night and yesterday evening is really on the borderline of discouraging me from attending concerts.  If it ever tips over into jazz-style applause and cheering during the actual playing I will retire with my CD collection.  If RN is really encouraging applause between movements then I'll consider myself forewarned and just not go to any of his concerts.  Are you sure he was doing this, Ruth?  It seems a peculiarly arrogant thing for someone like him to do.  It's the kind of behaviour that I expect from someone like Nigel Kennedy - who actually had the cheek to ask for rounds of applause for the conductor and the orchestra - which rather suggests he presumed we were applauding him exclusively before that point!

A reply from me, not Ruth, but yes, he was definitely encouraging between-movement applause. During the Haydn, RN applauded, and gave the audience a look which seemed to say, "Aren't you going to applaud too?".

I don't see why everyone over there is getting so hot under the collar about this applause business - it isn't as if other conductors are going to start encouraging it any more than they will Norrington's other thought-provoking foibles. An uncharitable observer might leap to the clearly unwarranted conclusion that classical music listeners are an ultra-conservative lot who get the righteous splutters whenever anything remotely unfamiliar happens. You couldn't make it up.

Been to the optician lately? 

Has there I wonder been a Sudden image makeover?