Page 504 - Aldeburgh Festival 2022 FINAL COVERAGE BOOK

Looking out from the Concert Hall Restaurant across the Suffolk marshes
towards Iken Church

Here we can breathe slowly and deeply from our diaphragms. We become
accustomed to the recently selected gear required for East Suffolk life. The
Aldeburgh Vibe sets in.

In this almost euphoric state, musical experiences command far more focused
attention.

At Orford Church, clarinettist Mark Simpson’s devastatingly still melodic line
in the slow movement of Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet performed with the Solem
Quartet has the effect of rendering everyone in the audience motionless.

Later that same evening, him and a network of musician friends (including
one extra player drawn the London Sinfonietta who were also playing at
Snape that night) rattle off Mozart’s considerable Gran Partita, revelling in the
clarity of Snape’s acoustic and wowing the audience with spectacular
articulation and jaw-dropping breath control. Rock stars the lot of them.