A couple of memorable concerts in this year’s Norfolk & Norwich Festival were delivered by the Britten Sinfonia and Norwich Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus.

Britten: Les Illuminations - Elizabeth Watts & Britten Sinfonia at Kings Place, London (Photo: Shoël Stadlen)

Britten: Young Apollo, Bowles: Six Piano Preludes, Copland: Clarinet Concerto, Britten: Les Illuminations, Copland: Appalachian Spring; Oleg Shebeta-Dragan (clarinet), Elizabeth Watts (soprano); Britten Sinfonia, led from the violin by Zoë Beyers; St Andrew’s Hall, Norwich.
Walton: Henry V: A Shakespeare’s Scenario, Belshazzar’s Feast; Norwich Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, cond: Matthew Andrews, Ashley Grote; Roderick Williams (baritone), Alex Jennings (voice); St Andrew’s Hall, Norwich
Kaija Saariaho: Terra Memoria, Vaughan Williams, Barber, Webern, Mahler; Kleio String Quartet, Berniya Hamie, Andrew Hamilton; Octagon Chapel
Reviewed by Tony Cooper (11, 12, 20 & 23 May 2026)

At this year's Norfolk & Norwich Festival, the Britten Sinfonia concert focused on Britten in America while the Norwich Philharmonic saluted William Walton in all his glory, whilst the young Kleio String Quartet made a big impression in their concerts

Feeling disillusioned with Europe, Benjamin Britten spent a formative and productive period in North America from 1939 to 1942 with Peter Pears where he composed such major works as the song-cycle Les Illuminations, his first opera Paul Bunyan and Sinfonia da Requiem.

Thankfully, Britten’s time in America proved personally and professionally worthwhile paving the way for such grand and exciting works as his Suffolk-based opera, Peter Grimes. And when Britten made the dangerous sea journey back to England in the spring of 1942, he was officially registered as a ‘conscientious objector’.

One of the first works he wrote on arriving in America was Young Apollo based on the final lines of John Keats’ poem Hyperion showing the image of Apollo as a ‘new, dazzling Sun-god, quivering with radiant vitality’. A delightful ten-minute piece and one of the few works Britten wrote for piano and orchestra, the commission came from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Receiving its first performance in August 1939 on CBC Radio with Britten as the solo pianist, the work’s characterized by a scintillating opening fanfare followed by a host of rapid and cascading glissando passages cutting through the sweeping, heroic textures of the strings comfortably played with flourish, flair and everything else by the renowned pianist, Huw Watkins, who often collaborates with the Britten Sinfonia.

Ashley Grote rehearsing the Norwich Philharmonic Chorus and Orchestra in Walton's Belshazzar's Feast at St Andrew's Hall, Norwich for Norfolk & Norwich Festival

I felt it appropriate, too, that Copland shared the stage with Britten in this remarkable and well-curated programme as both men enjoyed a close personal and professional relationship. Copland acted as a mentor and friend to Britten assisting him in navigating the American musical scene while introducing him to influential people.

Therefore, if Young Apollo comes over as a radiant and inspiring piece of writing so does Copland’s Clarinet Concerto, a 17-minute piece commissioned by the legendary jazz clarinettist, Benny Goodman, completed in 1948.

The concerto’s renowned for blending lyrical and nostalgic melodies with a fast-paced jazz-influenced and Latin-tinged second movement featuring a daring and showy solo cadenza in which Ukrainian-born clarinettist and BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist, Oleg Shebeta-Dragan, took all in his stride playing so magnificently.

Harbouring a tireless unyielding ability, Mr Shebeta-Dragan executed the highly demanding passages of the work with flawless precision not only punctuating the clarinet’s technical flexibility but also his technical ability, too, which is second to none. After a thrilling performance, he treated the audience to an encore, a solo piece, in which he employed the full range of the clarinet ending with a low raucous bluesy growl that gently vibrated round the cloistered surrounds of St Andrew’s Hall.

And in Britten’s song-cycle Les Illuminations, a vivid and intense piece of writing of ten surreal dream-like poems and prose passages penned by French-born Symbolist poet, Arthur Rimbaud, the work creates a dramatic, evocative scenario exploring passion, beauty and so much more.

Marked by a series of energetic and highly contrasting movements, Les Illuminations opens in grand fashion with ‘Fanfare’ acting as a bold structural prologue bursting with energy in a bright martial-type rhythm that weaves in and out of the entire work while the vocal line mimics a ceremonial bugle call summing up the brilliance and the ‘vaudeville’ side that characterizes so much of Rimbaud’s glorious writing.

Following such a wonderful opening with ‘Fanfare’, whose musical theme returns later in the work, divides the movements and appears three times throughout the work including the dramatic conclusion to the entire cycle. A rewarding performance all round especially in relation to the pizzicato cello and viola accompaniment found in ‘Villes’ and ‘Antique’, a couple of distinct prose poems showcasing Rimbaud’s radical approach to imagery and myth.

Originally written for Swiss soprano, Sophie Wyss - a favourite singer of Britten and the work’s dedicatee - Les Illuminations premièred on 30 January 1940 at London’s Aeolian Hall with the Boyd Neel Orchestra conducted by Boyd Neel. Ms Wyss was also the soloist in Our Hunting Fathers which received its world premiere on 25 September 1936 at St Andrew’s Hall as part of the 34th Norfolk & Norwich Triennial Festival, the commissioning body.

However, this performance for 2026 N&N Festival was graced and so well presented by Elizabeth Watts, a soprano whose clear articulate voice, heard over frantic and intense string playing, perfectly fitted this outstanding work.

Ms Watts became totally wrapped up in Britten’s deep and rich textural writing while the brilliant players of Britten Sinfonia were gathered round her in standing position which all added to an attractive stage presentation highlighting the intimacy of the work in which the large audience took to their hearts offering a resounding and elongated applause.

Graciously, Ms Watts, a Norwich-born girl and former chorister at Norwich Cathedral, offered a jewel of an encore with her brand-new arrangement of the lovely haunting ballad Scarborough Fair - Nellie Melba’s Home Sweet Home could well be next on her ‘little list’ of encores!

Copland: Clarinet Concerto - Oleg Shebeta-Dragan & Britten Sinfonia at Kings Place, London (Photo: Shoël Stadlen)

This enlightened programme ended with a wonderful and fulfilling performance of the renowned ballet/orchestral suite Appalachian Spring written by Copland in 1944 for famed American choreographer, Martha Graham.

Celebrated for the American pioneering spirit of the 19th century, Appalachian Spring - conjuring up the Shaker ideals of humility, contentment and the beauty of a simple but rewarding life - depicts a spring celebration for a new farmstead of a young couple: a pioneering woman and a revivalist. Performed on this occasion by the strings of Britten Sinfonia featuring pianist Huw Watkins and Britten Sinfonia’s sub-principal flautist, Sarah O’Flynn (another excellent Norwich-born musician) who made such a big contribution to the work overall.

Sandwiched somewhere between this lot, Huw Watkins took to the stage to play Six Piano Preludes composed in 1938 by American composer Paul Bowles, a student of Aaron Copland, who became best known as a writer by his novel The Sheltering Sky. However, the preludes (six in all) blend classical forms with a hint of jazz and blues thus making this rather short atmospheric and rhythmic piece a nice inclusion in the programme.

For their sell-out concert in St Andrew’s Hall, the Norwich Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, jointly conducted by Matthew Andrews and Ashley Grote, pulled no punches offering a splendid Walton double-bill comprising Henry V: A Shakespeare Scenario and Belshazzar’s Feast.

Created by Christopher Palmer, Henry V adapts music from Walton’s richly textured score for Laurence Olivier’s patriotic 1944 film of the same name into a performance piece for narrator, full orchestra and chorus.

For some reason or other, my thoughts churned round the timescales of Henry V: Agincourt was 1415, Shakespeare’s play 1599 and Walton’s score having an outing in Norwich in 2026 thereby reflecting that culture really does span centuries thus reminding one of shared histories and experiences.

Laurence Olivier in Henry V

Divided into six distinct symphonic movements - At the Boar’s Head, Embarkation, Harfleur, The Night Watch, Agincourt, At the French Court - with a prologue and epilogue, the work traces the narrative of Henry V from his preparation for combat with the French to his miraculous victory at Agincourt.

For sure a showpiece of music and drama, the Norwich Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus under Matthew Andrews pulled out all stops delivering a thrilling account of Walton’s score while the distinguished English actor, Alex Jennings - highly acclaimed for his work with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre - delivered a clear and charismatic performance greatly enhancing the drama of the music particularly the pivotal scene when the British forces captures Harfleur culminating in one of the Bard’s most famous and rousing rallying calls ‘Once more unto the breach, dear friends’ heard against Walton’s tense and strongly propelled orchestration proved a proud (and patriotic) moment all round finding great favour with the audience on high alert!

In stark contrast, the nostalgic, sombre interlude at the Boar’s Head found the Norwich Phil engaged in some fine and detailed playing of the ‘Passacaglia’ bubbling in nostalgia in a scene remembering the late and roguish Sir John Falstaff who, incidentally, was born in Norfolk at Caister Castle near Great Yarmouth, and King Henry V’s rowdy youth - in which Henry morphs from Prince Hal to being a responsible monarch.

Sir Thomas Erpingham was a Norfolk boy, too, born in the village of Erpingham near Aylsham (c.1357). His family held lands in the county going back to Norman times. He played an incredibly important role at Agincourt when approaching the age of 60 by being placed in command of Henry V’s archers who made up most of the English army. According to French chroniclers, when the armies were in position, Erpingham gave the order to advance by throwing his staff into the air shouting ‘Now strike!’

Erpingham features in Shakespeare’s play in the moving and quiet scene on the eve of the battle of Agincourt when Henry V asks Sir Thomas for the loan of his cloak and, therefore, in disguise walks the camp to mingle with his warriors, check their morale and secretly gauge their thoughts on the upcoming battle.

When Erpingham returned to Norfolk, he became a massive benefactor to the city of Norwich and in 1420 funded the construction of the beautiful ornate gatehouse that stands at the main entrance to Norwich Cathedral where a kneeling statue of him can still be seen above the arch.

However, the thrilling symphonic climax capturing the chaos of the famous 1415 battle witnessed the Phil’s seasoned and dedicated team of percussionists rolling up their sleeves getting stuck in and fully immersing themselves wholeheartedly into the show recreating the sound of clashing swords and the thunder of cavalry with driving, dissonant rhythms adding to the overall effect and excitement of the work highlighting that Walton’s Henry V is a ‘showstopper’ per se and a fit-and-proper work for a special festival event such as the N&N Festival which has choral music running through its veins since the founding of the old Norfolk & Norwich Triennial Festival in 1824.

Members of the audience were simply buzzing at the interval with sheer excitement while gearing themselves up for Walton’s dramatic and grand choral cantata Belshazzar’s Feast which, incidentally, received its world première on 8 October 1931 at Leeds Town Hall as part of the Leeds Triennial Festival featuring the London Symphony Orchestra, the Leeds Festival Chorus and baritone soloist Dennis Noble conducted by Malcolm Sargent.

From an historical perspective, Norwich Triennial shared their festival on a rotating basis with the cities of Leeds and Birmingham just as the Three Choirs Festival (the oldest choral/classical music festival of its kind) does to this very day rotating between the English cathedral cities of Hereford, Gloucester and Worcester.

For sure, a thrilling piece of writing, Belshazzar’s Feast features an extremely large chorus and orchestra together with a massive percussion section (Walton was a noisy bugger well known for his visceral rhythmic drive and explosive brassy climaxes) and for this N&N Festival concert they all came under the safe and disciplined control of the Master of Music of Norwich Cathedral, Ashley Grote, who presided over an exciting account of Walton’s marvellous and acclaimed work that hit the mark in more ways than one offering the Norwich Philharmonic Chorus - specially expanded for the occasion with guest singers from other local choirs - numbering a staggering 120 voices, a ‘Big Shout’ like no other. They did the work immensely proud.

The work’s theatricality and jazz-infused rhythms made their mark, too, so did Roderick Williams - who was artist-in-residence at the 2023 Aldeburgh Festival - in the pivotal role of Belshazzar, the doomed ruler whose reign was marked by self-indulgence, unteachable pride and a failure to recognize divine sovereignty. In the end he’s brought down by extreme arrogance and blasphemy. He should have gone to Specsavers to read more closely the writing on the wall!

Taking all things into account, the musical forces gathered tightly together on St Andrew’s Hall stage duly created a very big and exciting soundscape clearly balancing overwhelming vocal weight with instrumental grandeur to the delight of a packed and enthusiastic house witnessing the final choral concert of the 2026 N&N Festival which triggered off a wild round of rock-stadium applause.

The packed house was going barmy in appreciation by the rich and fulfilling music that they had just heard. And putting the icing on the cake, I overheard an old Norfolk boy making the comment that ‘the chorus sung their socks off’. They certainly did!

Under the artistic direction of Daniel Brine, who has been at the helm of the N&N Festival since 2018 steering it to grand and surprising adventures. I wonder what’s in store for next year? Hopefully, another great choral piece. Keep it going, I say!

Kleio String Quartet

Earlier in the festival, I came across BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists, Kleio String Quartet - Yume Fujise/Katherine Yoon (violins), Jaren Ziegler (viola), Gerard Flotats (cello) - for the first time at the Octagon Chapel. I was immediately taken by the accuracy and mastery of their playing especially in Helsinki-born composer Kaija Saariaho’s 2006 work Terra Memoria, one of her most frequently performed pieces commissioned by Carnegie Hall for the Emerson String Quartet, the subject-matter focusing on the souls of the departed.

Thereby a musical reflection on memory, loss and the changing ways we remember people, the Kleio Quartet well and truly captured the mood of Saariaho’s deep and intense writing offering a fine and detailed performance that moved between intimate, conversational textures and lush, unified, orchestral-like moments.

Strong and intense playing witnessed members of this fine quartet bowing on the same pitch one moment while the tender passages of the work, played so delicately and flute-like, on the other conjured up mixed emotions ranging from happiness to sadness thereby stamping the credentials of a fine and interesting work by Saariaho who, incidentally, resided in Paris and died there in June 2023 aged 70 years.

I first heard Saariaho a couple of years ago while in Germany attending a concert by Deutsche Symphonie-Orchester at the Philharmonie Berlin and heard Ciel d’hiver (Winter sky) - a work forming part of a Finnish-based programme under Finnish-born conductor, Tarmo Peltokoski, currently music director of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. Her exciting piece made a big contribution to the programme and, on the other hand, made a big impression on me.

The Kleio Quartet made a big impression on me, too. They stayed over for a second concert at the Octagon. What joy! What pleasure! Opening with Webern’s Langsamer Satz, a piece he found inspiration for by his innermost feelings for his future wife, Wilhelmine Mörtl.

Although Webern had planned to compose a full-scale string quartet, he only managed to complete one movement which was lost but rediscovered in the early 1960s by Hans and Rosaleen Moldenhauer when they stumbled across the manuscript in an attic in Perchtoldsdorf, a town lying in the vicinity of Vienna.

A richly-textured, late-romantic, emotionally-charged work, Langsamer Satz, conveying themes of yearning, turmoil and tranquillity, was beautifully and ravishingly played by the Kleio Quartet who brought out the sensitiveness and tenderness of the score punctuating the composer’s early but masterful contrapuntal skills and his ability to convey a passionate love scenario tinged with a sense of melancholy in what I can only describe as an abstract musical landscape.

Joining the quartet for the second item of what was a superbly curated programme witnessed baritone Andrew Hamilton delivering a tender and exacting reading of Samuel Barber’s Dover Beach, a setting of the poignant 1867 Victorian poem written by a youthful Matthew Arnold composed by Barber in 1931 while a student at the Curtis Institute of Music.

The music reflects the poem’s melancholic reflection on a world without faith, shifting between peaceful imagery of the sea in contrast to the darker and tense harmonies representing human misery and lost security.

The programme was further enriched by Brighton-born pianist, Berniya Hamie, joining members of the Kleio Quartet in a performance of Mahler’s Movement for Piano Quartet in A minor, the composer’s only surviving chamber work written around 1876 when he was a student at the Vienna Conservatoire. A passionate, single-movement work of 15 minutes featuring a host of dramatic, romantic themes, rich harmonic textures and a strong piano part was played with panache by Ms Hamie.

To round of this brilliant concert, the Kleio Quartet, pianist Berniya Hamie and baritone Andrew Hamilton came together delivering a lovely and inviting reading of Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs originally written for soloist, choir and orchestra but performed on this occasion in its chamber version.

A dramatic piece of storytelling of the highest order, the text explores Christian mystical themes particularly in relation to the Trinity and the Resurrection penned by the 17th-century Welsh poet and Anglican priest, George Herbert.

An exceptional work with an exceptional singer. What more can one say. Andrew Hamilton was immaculate, his diction paramount, his performance impeccable and so well-controlled thus making his interpretation of RVW’s Five Mystical Songs (premièred at the 1911 Three Choirs Festival in Worcester with the composer conducting) so enjoyable to hear in the intimate surroundings of the lovely 18th-century Octagon Chapel.

Although an atheist at the time of writing, Vaughan Williams was comfortable in setting verse of an overly religious nature and Five Mystical Songs moved from personal reflection in all the songs except the last ‘Let all the world in every corner sing’ which is so well known encouraging universal praise to God from both heaven and earth. The other settings comprise Easter (‘Rise heart; thy Lord is risen’), ‘I Got Me Flowers’, ‘Love Bade Me Welcome’ and The Call (‘Come, my way, my truth, my life).

And when you think it’s all over, it isn’t. I managed to take in a fantastic show by the National Youth Jazz Orchestra at Epic Studios as part of the Norwich Jazz Festival, curated by Norwich Arts Centre, in association with the N&N Festival.

Performing a South African-themed programme, NYJO highlighted the legacy of the legendary South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim and the sounds of South African township jazz in a project developed by long-time Ibrahim collaborator, Pete Letanka.

A brilliant show all round delivered by a brilliant bunch of ‘young bloods’ exploring the unique blend of traditional African rhythms, gospel harmonies and big-band energy that served as an anthem of resilience, unity and liberation during the anti-apartheid movement.

Playing to an admiring audience about 500 strong, NYJO ended their show with a tribute to New Orleans delivering a raw and earthy ‘marching’ number that had the audience on their feet stamping and shouting for more. And that’s what they got, another great number (but softer in tone) that sent them packing after enjoying a glorious and entertaining night of township jazz tinged with big-band swing.

There was such good stuff in this festival and if there was a ‘man-of-the-match’ in musical parlance, the concert by the Kleio Quartet, Berniya Hamie and Andrew Hamilton (all BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists) would get my vote. Bravo! 

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