Thaxted Festival launches with Young Musician of the Year

14/03/2023

Image © Monoki Media.

Thaxted Parish Church welcomed BBC Young Musician of the Year Jordan Ashman at the launch of the 2023 Thaxted Festival.

The launch event was held on Sunday, 5 March, and featured the young percussionist from Milton in Cambridge.

A rapt audience listened to Jordan playing a range of percussion instruments, including the marimba. He played a range of music by mostly living composers - such as Eric Sammut and Cameron Sinclair.

Jordan won BBC Young Musician of the Year 2022 with his performance of Jennifer Higdon's Percussion Concerto, which was broadcast on BBC Four and BBC Radio 3, accompanied by the BBC Philharmonic at Bridgewater Hall in Manchester.

He is currently principle percussionist with the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain, where he has been awarded the percussion prize for the past three years.

Zeb Soanes of Classic FM, who is a patron of the festival, introduced the event, and details of the upcoming programme were announced by artistic director Andrew Jenkins.

This was the inaugural event of the festival's developing artists programme, and was open exclusively to Thaxted Music Lovers subscribers. The scheme offers many benefits including access to special events and priority concert booking ahead of the main season general booking start of 11 April.

Click here to see the full 2023 concert programme.

Here is a video of Jordan’s performance at our launch in Thaxted Church:

“[The Tippett Quartet] concert as part of the 2023 Thaxted Festival revealed a group of musicians of profound interpretative depth, and capable of traversing a wide range of repertoire.”
Colin Clarke, Classical Explorer

“A positively life-enhancing performance of Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love in English with reduced ensemble by Wild Arts…”
Colin Clarke, Classical Explorer

“The performance was a joy … and the quartet brought out its sense of both structural and linear perfection.” Holst’s Phantasy Quartet Op 36 performed by the Tippett Quartet.
Colin Clarke, Classical Explorer

“The Tippett Quartet and Emma Abbate have performed Schumann’s Piano Quintet together many times. On this occasion they combined flawless execution with instinctive – and utterly engaging – musicianship.”
Claire Seymour, in Seen and Heard International.

“…this was a wonderfully enjoyable and engaging performance that really punched above its weight. The audience in Thaxted clearly loved it and were fully engaged, whilst this experienced reviewer was carried away as well.”
Wild Art’s production of The Elixir of Love, reviewed by Robert Hugill in Planet Hugill

“2 terrific concerts I heard with London Mozart Players.”
Thaxted Festival concertgoer

“I think Gustav is smiling down to see how his memory and that of his best friend and colleague Ralph Vaughan Williams are honoured by the expertly played pieces they both composed.”
Thaxted Festival concertgoer

“It's always the variety and quality which keeps me coming back.”
Thaxted Festival concertgoer