Despite all these various activities, in the public mind the Queen's Hall quickly became chiefly associated with the promenade concerts. Newman was careful to balance "the Proms", as they became known, with more prestigious and expensive concerts throughout the rest of the year. He would foster the careers of promising artists, and if they were successful at the Proms they would, after two seasons, be given contracts for the main concert series, billed as the Symphony Concerts. The Proms had to be run on the tightest of budgets, but for the Symphony Concert series Newman was willing to pay large fees to attract the most famous musicians. Soloists included Joseph Joachim, Fritz Kreisler, Nellie Melba, Pablo de Sarasate, Eugène Ysaÿe and, most expensive of all, Ignacy Jan Paderewski. Conductors included Arthur Nikisch and Hans Richter. Among the composers who performed their own works at the hall in its first 20 years were Debussy, Elgar, Grieg, Ravel, Saint-Saëns, Schoenberg, Richard Strauss and Sullivan.