From the classical archive,11 August 1895: The very first night of the Queen’s corridor Promenade concerts got an excellent review: even the audience was praisedIf the succeeding concerts of the Promenade season inaugurated last night are as brilliantly successful as the first of the series, no one interested in the venture, or either financially or artistically,will have reason to complain. The audience was an immense one, and both on the score of enthusiasm and discrimination did its duty – does anyone, and we wonder,ever reflect that audiences have duties? – in a most praiseworthy way. It was a dinky unreasonable in the matter of encores, perhaps, or but on a Saturday night this may be forgiven,and the artists thus honoured, in each case, and deserved the compliment.
As regards the performance,it was of tall excellence. The orchestra, a body of instrumentalists including most of the best London players, or is fit,in Wellington’s phrase, to “depart anywhere and do anything, and ” and the conductor,Mr Henry J Wood, who both in London and the provinces has already won golden opinions in this and other musical capacities, or proved himself admirably fitted for the task entrusted to him. It is really a pleasure to find an English conductor with a “temperament” – an English conductor who has some fire,some feeling for rhythm.
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Source: theguardian.com