Flautist Aisling Agnew: ‘Having lived away from Belfast for 20 years, I’m enjoying rediscovering places and finding new ones’

The best time to get up at the weekend is? Do you treat yourself to a lie-in?

Weekends are often just as busy for a musician, but I love the sense of a slower pace around me, and if I can get away with it, will read my book with a coffee for a little while before the day starts.

Breakfast or brunch?

I’m a fan of breakfast, and sometimes second breakfast. On weekdays it’s usually just simple things, but my daughter loves weekend treats like French toast or making pancakes with me. We like to put a record on and take our time.

What does an ideal Saturday look like?

I’m often in rehearsals for a concert later, but that’s what I love doing so it isn’t a hardship. If I have the day off, then we like to go into town and wander round St George’s Market and potter about town, usually having a cosy games or movie night at home.

What would your perfect Sunday be like?

I love some escapism and will always get away to the hills or the sea if I can. It’s so easy to do that here, you can almost instantly forget about the city, and I never tire of that. My daughter loves adventurous walks best, so we head straight up a mountain if she gets the choice.

Do you prefer to be indoors or outdoors?

I love both. I love museums, art galleries, concerts, bookshops, old pubs… that’s what I crave about city life. But we are very lucky to have a family home in Donegal and will go there any chance we get. I run or walk on my favourite beach and swim in summer.

How have weekends changed as you have gotten older?

I think since I was about 16 or 17 and started going to hear Ulster Orchestra every Friday night with my friends, my weekends have continued to be about live music. I’m usually playing concerts with Hard Rain Soloist Ensemble now more often than attending, but I still love to go for a drink after and chat about it all. It’s hard to instantly relax after all the adrenalin so it’s good to have that time to digest everything and laugh about things. Having lived away from Belfast for almost 20 years, I’m enjoying rediscovering places and finding new ones.

If you could eat out anywhere tonight in NI, where would you go and why?

Hard to decide, but anywhere with a good veggie menu. We recently celebrated a special occasion at Ardtara Country House and the food and everything was excellent, so if I could magic myself there with my whole family tonight that would be lovely.

What would you have?

I like to order things out that I wouldn’t normally cook myself, or wouldn’t do justice to.

At weekends you’ll always make time to…

Do the activities my daughter likes, which are sometimes a bit rushed midweek. Try to keep my computer shut and will always try to see friends or family.

Do you sometimes work at weekends?

It’s rare that I’m not working on weekends and there’s really no week the same. Last weekend I was playing with RTÉ Concert Orchestra in Dublin, and this weekend we have the Hard Rain SoloistEnsemble in Belfast on Sunday 12 ahead of our showcase concert for Classical:NEXT from 13-17 May. I then fly back from Berlin for a new music festival, TERRAIN at Accidental Theatre in Belfast, and the following weekend will be performing at the Waterfront Hall with Ulster Orchestra.

Who would you most like to go for a drink with and why?

Probably Alex Ross or Kate Molleson, as I just love how they write and talk about music. They both bring to life the relevance and creativity of modern music. It sometimes seems here a bit like a niche interest, so I like that connection to a global audience. Also, how they manage to shake off any elitism of classical music and platform truly inspiring artists.

Are you a weekend cook? If so, what’s your speciality dish?

I used to be, and loved learning new recipes on weekends. But life has been so busy these past few years, and as a single-mum I sometimes opt for quick dinners or eating out on weekends to give myself a break and have more quality time with my daughter instead.

What’s your dream Sunday dinner?

I had an amazing Sunday dinner at Deane’s at Queen’s on Mother’s Day this year. Still dreaming of it.

Who do you normally eat Sunday dinner with and where?

My mum also makes dream Sunday dinners so my parents often treat us to a roast at their house, and include lots of great veggie options for me.

Too tired to cook – what are you ordering from the takeaway?

I can’t see past noodles from a takeaway, they’re my weakness. But I’m also lucky to have a very good Vietnamese restaurant and an Indian restaurant on my doorstep as well as lots of pizza places, so we can just pop round the corner.

Heading for the cinema? What are you going to see?

I love the cinema and especially QFT. I’d say I have quite eclectic taste, probably less excited about blockbusters but would give most things a go.

Staying in… what TV/streaming/catch-up programmes are on the menu?

I don’t watch much TV so I’m probably years behind everyone else. I recently enjoyed Back to Life and also Dead to Me, which I just finished. Gladiators with my daughter was a blast from the past.

What are you reading? Fave type of book?

Reading has become one of my favourite things to do. I definitely read more fiction these days and just finished A Little Life, which was amazing and a bit devastating. I’m now reading Sounds and Sweet Airs: The Forgotten Women of Classical Music.

Bedtime is…?

Bedtime varies a lot and from one extreme to the other – very late if I have a concert, very early if I don’t. It usually always involves drifting off with my book. I don’t always sleep well but always have vivid dreams which often run from one night into the next.