Composing Retreat at Aldeburgh: Day 1

 Composing Retreat at The Cosy Nook in the grounds of The Red House, Aldeburgh

Day 1, 5th February 2022

I hear high strings, tremolando, punctuated by ceremonial bells from the Far East, tasting up the mix like the injection of an exotic herb, perhaps turmeric for its healing taste and smell, also for its glorious orange hue.

She is receiving

The Nook is indeed cosy as its description from the Aldeburgh foundation declares. I can feel it is conceived by an architect of vision. The doors swing on a central axis allowing more free flow and the main room is flanked by two bedrooms to form a modest cross reminiscent of a Celtic origin. It is always warm.

Driving to Aldeburgh from North Norfolk yesterday felt like a pilgrimage to the heart of what it could mean to be an artist: Being alone and reflective, time to think. As I circumnavigated Norwich on the south ring road, I thought of my Dad and his sitting as a Recorder in the crown court. I thought of his humbleness and delight at staying in a little hotel at Horning on the broads. As I set deeper into Suffolk the sun lowered to project magnificent light. Blythburgh church looked stunning but I still felt my usual dusk inner mourning descend. As I navigated my mini through the complex lanes my thoughts turned to Britten himself. I imagined what pleasure he must have felt as he drove through the Scots pines bumping over heath-formed ha ha's. His beloved Red House a symbol of his inner life. I sit down to compose in the Cosy Nook.

She is Revealing 

The mission of my residency is to compose a work based on Julian of Norwich's Revelations of Divine Love which she created after a debilitating high fever in May 1373. It could have been the Black Death but she survived. There are resonances with Covid and the meaning of the ancient goddess is revived under cover.

I feel somewhat overwhelmed with the task ahead as I want to compose this work in the 13 days given to me. Julian's revelations took place over a few days, perhaps I can make it! There is little to distract me just glimpses of the Red House from most windows, beautifully tended gardens full of silver birch, eucalyptus and snowdrops. The new Britten/Pears red brick archive looms impressively. I take a sunny walk to the seafront and am astounded by The Moot Hall. The wind is high and I stock up at Tescos on the way back but the Nook remains cosy. 

The Moot Hall, Aldeburgh

I have sketched five minutes of music today. The original owner Nellie Hudson and her dog Gilda watch over me from their photo. This cosy Nook was built by Britten and Pears specifically for Nellie who was their housekeeper. What a legacy. Now it is night and the wind is lashing around the Cosy Nook but all is well.

Nellie Hudson and Gilda