Maestro (British TV series)

Maestro
Created by	BBC Classical Music Department
Presented by	Clive Anderson
Judges	Sir Roger Norrington Zoë Martlew Simone Young Dominic Seldis.
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of series	1
Production
Production company	BBC
Original release
Network	BBC Two

Maestro is a 2008 reality tv talent show-themed television series produced by the BBC's Classical Music Department in the United Kingdom which will broadcast on BBC Two in August and September 2008.

The show will have eight celebrities (described by the BBC as "famous amateurs with a passion for classical music") competing for the chance to conduct the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the 2008 Proms in the Park at Hyde Park in London on 13 September, 2008 as part of the BBC Proms series Last Night of the Proms. The show will be presented by Clive Anderson.

Format

The aim for each of the students will be to prove that they can take to the stage and conduct at the Proms in the Park.

The first stage of preparation will be a week-long Baton Camp for the students in the last week of May. A mentor will be assigned to each student. Each mentor, all of whom are established professional conductors, will then work them helping them to master the disciplines of orchestral, choral and operatic music. Rehearsals then continue throughout the summer with the students learning how to inspire and engage with the orchestra and the music.

In August the students will conduct in the weekly show which will be broadcast on BBC Two in front of a studio audience and an international judging panel made up of leading musicians. They will conduct the BBC Concert Orchestra and each week one student will be eliminated. At the end of each show, the judging panel and members of the BBC Concert Orchestra will decide which student to vote off.

Contestants and mentors

The eight students are

• Goldie: Electronic music artist, disc jockey, and actor.
• Alex James: Bass player with Blur.
• Jane Asher: Actress
• Katie Derham: Television and radio presenter.
• Peter Snow: Television and radio presenter.
• David Soul: Actor
• Sue Perkins: Radio and television presenter, actress and writer.
• Bradley Walsh: Comedian and television actor.

The eight mentors are

• Brad Cohen
• Jason Lai: Assistant conductor of the BBC Philharmonic.
• Natalia Luis-Bassa: Principal Conductor of the Huddersfield Philharmonic Orchestra, Haffner Orchestra and Hallam Sinfonia
• Matthew Rowe
• Ivor Setterfield
• Peter Stark (leaving after the baton camp)
• Sarah Tennant-Flowers
• Christopher Warren-Green: Music Director of the London Chamber Orchestra and Orchestra of the Megaron, Athens.

Judging panel

The panel will be led by conductor Sir Roger Norrington (who will be conducting the Last Night Of The Proms 2008 at the Royal Albert Hall) and also includes composer and cellist Zoë Martlew, conductor Simone Young and double bassist Dominic Seldis.