Upbeat: Uphill struggle

FOLLOWING the symphony by Bruckner in do-it-yourself style, planned for amateur all- comers in London this autumn, there comes word of Yorkshire's answer. It is Richard Strauss's Alpine Symphony with members of 19 local orchestras - six of them youth orchestras. This is the work with 12 horns and wind and thunder machines which featured in the Independent's list of Proms to be wary of (it's at the Albert Hall on 23 August). The northern performance, at the City of Leeds College of Music on 19 September, is another one-day event, with professional tutors from the English Northern Philharmonia and Edward Warren conducting. Like the London day, it's part of a BT-sponsored training programme for non- professionals by the National Federation of Music Societies.