Proms on Four: Battle of the Big Bands

“It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing…” The Late Night Proms have been deliciously eclectic (Pet Shop Boys, Rameau, John Tavener and, still to come, Paloma Faith and Rufus Wainwright) and now this riotous presentation, a Battle of the Bands.

Hosted by jazz singer Clare Teal, the concert transports us back to the swing era of the 1920s and 30s, re-creating the band sound of Count Basie and Duke Ellington. Their modern equivalents are Grant Windsor and James Pearson (aka Duke Windsor and Count Pearson), whose bands vie for the biggest audience ovation in a roof-raising “Battle Royal” – aided by vocalists Gregory Porter and Vula Malinga.