Review: Jade Thirlwall and Royal Northern Sinfonia for BBC Proms in Gateshead
South Shields-born Jade celebrated a unique homecoming with a powerful and, at times, emotional concert alongside the iconic orchestra Royal Northern Sinfonia
Well and truly in the mood for an evening of live music thanks to a DJ set by Becky Woodcock on the concourse, we headed to The Glasshouse’s Sage One in time for BBC radio presenters Elizabeth Alker, Greg James and Sian Eleri to announce the first act. Greg described The Glasshouse as a ‘stunning venue’, adding ‘we love the North East and we love the musical heritage of the North East’. Finn Forster got the crowd going with an acoustic set, playing songs from his EP. He said this was ‘an incredible milestone’ for him in ‘such a beautiful venue’.
Jade arrived on stage, as glamorous as ever, to huge applause. While the Royal Northern Sinfonia are renowned for their orchestral talent, we were unsure how this would work with Jade’s sound. The Glasshouse’s home orchestra and conductor and arranger Robert Ames were at their very best as they reimagined Jade’s tracks, as well as a stunning take on Madonna’s Frozen.
Her solo hit Angel of My Dreams was a real highlight of the evening, fans were overjoyed to hear Little Mix single Sweet Melody, and her remix of Clubland classics was a surprise. The Royal Northern Sinfonia really can take on any challenge. A standout for us though was Jade’s cover of fellow Northerner Sam Fender’s Remember My Name – extremely emotional, it sounded beautiful in the stunning acoustics of Sage One.
Jade told the crowd how this was a real homecoming performance for her, having performed at The Glasshouse (The Sage at the time) as a teen, saying ‘this is very much a full circle moment for me’. She added she was blown away by the ‘phenomenal’ Royal Northern Sinfonia – as were we.
This was truly a night of celebrating what it is to be northern, and proved why venues such as The Glasshouse are so important in supporting the talent we have in our region. Aside from her X Factor success, Jade highlighted the North East’s support in making her dreams a reality. She added: ‘It’s really important and it is essential to remember the next regeneration of artists… the arts need the funding, especially for working class families.’
