Once more the peace and quiet of Church Square in the shadow of Rye’s hilltop Norman church was disturbed by drummers – but it was not the only event waking the town up to the start of the fortnight long Arts Festival.
The first week featured 31 events, not including exhibitions and various fringe events, and five were in St Mary’s in Church Square with the first on Sunday featuring a bishop and a cathedral choir, followed by a pianist on Monday, a violinist and pianist on Tuesday (Anthony Marwood on violin and Aleksander Madzar on piano), another pianist, Tzu-Yin Han who won the 2016 Hastings International Piano Concerto Competition, on Wednesday, and a piano trio on Thursday.
As they usually have their own instruments, despite the church already having two pianos, the stage staff are kept busy.
Other venues in the historic Citadel included the Kino courtyard and cinema, the Gun Garden overlooking the dogfights of the Second World War’s Battle of Britain, the Methodist church and Lamb House, where American author Henry James lived – and Andreas Prindl gave two sell-out performances as Henry James.
The next week, to Saturday October 1, features nearly as many events, and ends – as the Festival  started – with an opera.
But the Festival is not all about opera – or indeed music in general. It also celebrates local artists like Nash, dramatists like Fletcher, and writers like Henry James – the centenary of whose death is celebrated this year. Fletcher was celebrated at last Monday’s production of “For all time” at the Rye Creative Centre.
Photos : Rye and District Camera Club