"Informative, uplifiting and sociable" A visit to Snape and Framlingham

Everyone arrived promptly to join the coach at the Holiday Inn and were met with a friendly greeting by Jack, our driver for the day; a familiar face to many as he had been the driver for last year’s residential to Kent.

In very wet weather we began our journey for what proved to be a thoroughly informative and entertaining day, giving glimpses of the wider world of Arts and creativity, with inputs on Music, Architecture, History, the Visual Arts and rural crafts.

We arrived at Snape Maltings and, after coffee, there was time to wander, protected from the rain, around the inside attractions of the site, with its historical links to farming and the brewing industry. There was also time for a little retail therapy in its range of Artisan shops, Galleries and Deli.

The main event was the concert by the Chaos Quartet. They are one of this year’s group of 7 emerging professional musical soloists and ensembles supported by Radio Three’s New Generation Artists scheme and are also part of the Britten Pears Young Arts programme. This, combined with their success at a number of international competitions, boded well for the excellence of their performance and we were not disappointed.

The programme featured two string Quartets , one by Beethoven and the other by Fanny Hensel. The latter was a new name to many of us but it proved to be the married name of Fanny Mendlessohn, sister of Felix. We learned from the programme note that many of her early works were attributed to her brother as , in keeping with the customs of the day, music was thought to be a mere ‘ornament ‘ for women . In fact her own brother suggested that her domestic duties should be her main priority and that ‘publishing under her own name ‘would disturb her in these so that he could not approve of it.! The leader of the quartet told us about the link between the two pieces in that Fanny was a devoted fan of Beethoven  and incorporated a number of his musical phrases into her own compositions.

The playing of both pieces was exquisite and the young performers swiftly established a rapport with the capacity audience. We came away with a feeling of having heard something very special and our mood was further enhanced by the appearance of bright sunshine.

We then set off for our visit to Framlingham Castle, an imposing relic of the Architectural and building skills of the 12th Century craftsmen. Our visit started with a tour by well informed guides who were able to explain the various  phases  of the architecture , renovations and additions relating to the fabric of the building , together with an equally vivid insight into the lives of the inhabitants over the centuries. In the words of the English Heritage Guide we found out ‘more about its journey from a Norman powerhouse to a 17h century home for the poor’. Originally built by Roger Bigood , Earl of Norfolk, it was home for the Dukes of Norfolk for over 400 years. It moved in and out of the Norfolk family’s tenure according to the changing political allegiances over time. We learned that it became the launching pad for Mary Tudor’s assault on the English throne and the ousting of Lady Jane Grey  the ‘nine day queen’. Perhaps this brought back memories for us of very recent political history!

Framlingham castle was only once in its history under real siege and this proved to be a short lived affair, with the inhabitants surrendering to a far superior force. In 1635 the castle was sold to Sir Robert Hitcham and he gave orders for its demolition and replacement as a workhouse for the poor. This was eventually achieved in the mid 17th century  ,with purpose built accommodation opening in 1729. Workhouse inmates remained there until the mid 19th century. The castle was placed under the Guardianship of Pembroke College Cambridge in 1913 and passed to English Heritage in 1984.

After the guided tour we were free to wander. Some took advantage of the Tea Room while others, perhaps more adventurous and fleet of foot, set out to walk the castle ramparts.

 Still in bright, if windy, weather we returned to Norwich by 5.30.

A most informative, uplifting and sociable day with our grateful thanks to Mike for another masterclass in Tour Organisation.

Photo credits: Régine Godfrey and Ross Jolliffe