BBC Proms in August 2026: The Concerts Worth Booking This Month
The Proms reach their busiest stretch in August, and this year's season, built around a celebration of American music for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, saves several of its biggest nights for this month. With most of the city on holiday, the Royal Albert Hall is one of the best reasons to stay in town. These are the dates we would plan around, with a reminder that £8 Promming tickets are released for every concert, usually from 9.30am the day before.
This week
- Wednesday 5 August: Under African Skies: The Songs of Graceland, a Late Night Prom marking 40 years of Paul Simon's album. If you cannot get in, Radio 2 broadcasts it on 19 August.
- Thursday 6 August: Weber's opera Oberon receives its first ever Proms performance, conducted by Mark Elder.
- Friday 7 August: Paraorchestra performs Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians, a hypnotic, pulsing classic of American minimalism and one of the more unusual nights of the season.
The American heart of the month
The middle of August is where the season's theme comes into sharpest focus. On 11 August Thomas Adès's Dante, Part 1: Inferno is on the programme, and the LA Philharmonic and Gustavo Dudamel play two concerts, pairing Beethoven with Adès that night and with Ortiz on 12 August. It is a rare chance to hear one of America's great orchestras on consecutive evenings. On 13 August comes the UK premiere of Wynton Marsalis's Concerto for Orchestra, and on 20 August a Miles Davis centenary Prom. Angel Blue sings with Chineke! Orchestra on 22 August, and on 24 August Marin Alsop conducts the American Classics Prom, which sold out on the first day of booking.
The Met Orchestra arrives
Late in the month the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra from New York makes its Proms debut with two concerts: Strauss with soprano Elza van den Heever on 26 August, and Mahler with Joyce DiDonato on 27 August. That same night a Late Night Prom, Ultimate Calm, offers a gentler way to end the evening. For a weekend matinee, try 23 August, when Felix Klieser plays Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 3 and Thea Musgrave's Bassoon Concerto receives its premiere. The full line-up is set out in BBC Music Magazine's season guide, and Record of the Day's round-up covers the Late Night Proms and radio broadcasts.
How to make it work
Sold-out concerts often have returns at the Hall's box office, and Promming remains the most reliable way into the most popular nights. Every Prom is broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and BBC Sounds if you are away, and a selection is shown on BBC television and iPlayer. If you are new to the Proms, a Late Night Prom is the gentlest introduction: shorter, more informal and a fine way to finish a summer evening. From Knightsbridge the Hall is a walk along Kensington Road or one stop on the Piccadilly line to South Kensington. For more dates this month, see our events listings.
Lead image: JOHN K THORNE via Flickr, CC0.
