And on Thursday he was at Lynn Corn Exchange as one of the main Festival headliners.

As I scanned the programme, two things struck me. The first being that this was to be a recital of works by a single composer, and secondly, it was to be in the presence of The Duke Of Kent.

The second of these two facts played no further part in proceedings, but further interrogation of the programme notes led me to discover that John Lill is respected worldwide as a leading interpreter of Beethoven which explained the musical selection on offer.

We began with Sonata No.2 in C Sharp Minor Op.27, No.2 Moonlight, an exceedingly long title for such an instantly recognisable piece. It was beautiful, and nice to be in familiar territory for the first presentation.

The second piece pre-interval was The Sonata in C Major, Op.53, Waldstein, or the Waldstein Sonata if you prefer. Dedicated to Count Waldstein, all three movements of this work begin softly and in fact Beethoven rejected his original slow movement in favour of a shorter one leaving the original as a stand-alone piece called Andante Favori.

The second half opened with the Sonata in F Major Op.54. I think the inclusion of this piece was intended as an antidote to the grandeur of the Waldstein before and the Appassionata to come and it is a work that has had its share of criticism, the most hurtful of which must be the contention that it was made from the bits left on the cutting room floor after Beethoven had completed the other two, more critically-acclaimed pieces!

We finished the performance with The Appassionata or Piano Sonata in F Minor, Op.57 for the purist. The work on this masterpiece started in 1804 and it has always been regarded as one of the high points of the maestro's middle period.

Beethoven himself likened the piece to Shakespeare's Tempest, although in what context is unsure.

It was a fitting end to a magnificent recital a rare provincial opportunity to see such a world-renowned exponent playing to the very highest standard the music closest to his heart.

Four rounds of applause, no encores and home in the gathering twilight. It doesn't get much better than this!