Composer Ned Bigham marks his 60th birthday with the world premiere of his South Downs Suite – a 60th birthday commission – at this year’s Petworth Festival.

The Ned Bigham 60th Birthday Concert with the London Conchord Ensemble will be on Wednesday, July 22 at 7.30pm in St Mary’s Church, Petworth, with tickets available on https://petworthfestival.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173669987

Bignor Park-based Ned, known locally to many as Ned Mersey, said: “I was chatting to (Petworth Festival artistic director) Stewart Collins about doing a new commission for the Petworth Festival perhaps to coincide with this occasion, and he was really excited about doing a piece for a large chamber ensemble. In fact, I think this is the largest chamber ensemble that the Petworth Festival will ever have had. It's a nine-piece – a nonet. The London Conchord Ensemble have performed for the Petworth Festival before, and they are amazing.”

As for the piece, Ned says: “I'm just so lucky to be surrounded by the South Downs. I wanted to write a tribute to them and in some way create a piece that attempted to evoke the beauty of the South Downs and the joy of wandering along them.

placeholder image — Ned Mersey (contributed pic)

“It's a lifetime really of going out there and staring, a lifetime of collective memories that I wanted to convey. I think my starting point was the River Arun at Amberley.”

Its flow suggested a musical pattern from which the rest of the piece developed: “It came in fits and starts to be honest. Sometimes a section would come easily but other times it's like pulling your hair out to try to get yourself out of a particular corner.”

But Ned is excited at the piece which has emerged, a suite in four movements: “The opening movement is called Barlavington Down which is quite a steep ascent. I imagined myself walking up there and seeing the beautiful views. The second movement is Eartham Wood which is quite dark and mysterious which is a great invitation to a composer! The third movement is Amberley Brooks which is very much where the Arun inspiration came in, and then the 4th movement is Coldharbour, a farm just on the north side, just next to Barlavington Down. It is north facing and it has got a very funny mixture of being very secluded and a little bit bleak in terms of sunlight in the winter but it also feels like a place of harbour and safety.”

Ned is delighted to be entrusting the piece to The London Conchord Ensemble: “This is the world premiere, and they are an amazing ensemble. They are world-class players. They are absolutely top class. We will be rehearsing for a few days before the concert and that's perhaps when I might have to make a few tweaks. It is definitely nerve-racking but I will be hoping that it gets some more performances. It is notoriously difficult to get multiple performances for a new piece but I do hope that this will open up some opportunities in the future.”

Alongside The South Downs Suite, The London Conchord Ensemble are promising an “exquisite programme of English music paired with one of the high-points of 20th-century chamber music, Ravel’s Introduction and Allegro.”

Programme: Vaughan Williams – Fantasia on Greensleeves; Ravel – Introduction and Allegro; Ned Bigham – The South Downs Suite (60th birthday commission); Finzi – Interlude for Oboe and String Quartet Op. 21; Elgar – Quintet in A minor for Piano and String Quartet, Op. 84.