My preview of this year's Proms is in today's Independent. Read the whole thing here.

I was mildly amused to learn that the doom and gloom around the non-appearance of any American orchestras this year has been a tad exaggerated - apparently more down to bad luck in the planning department than anything really sinister in the backroom. And it's not the first time in living memory, either - the same situation occurred in 2004. Yes, the Philadelphia Orchestra cancelled a European tour that would have included a Prom, but the tiptop orchestras have to be booked several years ahead and sometimes it's just that the dates don't work.