Musician David Agnew has revealed he is suffering from long Covid – and will retire from the RTE concert orchestra after 40 years.
The ex-husband of panto queen Twink, also known as Adele King, revealed he was diagnosed with long Covid last November and since then it has affected his ability to hear.
The legendary oboist – who publicly separated from Twink back in 2004 after David left her for another woman - said that while it isn’t the main reason why he is retiring from the RTE Concert Orchestra, he admitted he doesn’t feel “match fit” anymore and doesn’t have the stamina to perform at concerts.
He said: “It’s time to go and to be honest the last two years, it’s been like semi-retirement anyway. The first six weeks was great with the good weather. I built a deck out the back and I was planting potatoes and I was cycling up to Tara, picking wild garlic to throw into my omelette,” he said jokingly.
“But then after that, the grieving process started. We embraced the technology thing, recording things on your phone, sending them in, getting microphones with fancy sound and then someone in here would gather all the material and put it out as a work but you realise it was an empty experience.
“You’re still doing the quality of the work but you’re not deriving from any of the benefits from being surrounded by the people. You don’t have the emotional attachment,” he told Claire Byrne on her Rte Radio 1 show.
Agnew said he noticed he can’t keep up with the new batch of “hungry” musicians, adding: “They can’t wait to get back to rehearsals, concerts, travelling.. all of that stuff. I feel I am just hanging on.”
He said: “I’m not match fit. I find that exhausting, even just to get through a concert. As well as that I have long Covid. I had Covid in November and it has affected the membranes in my ears. It means that I go quite deaf the more sound… driving in here, the car, the vibration of the engine aggravates the ears, so I get quite deaf, so I have 70 per cent hearing.
“Like we drove down to Wexford we had a concert down there and my right ear went. And it was my last solo with the orchestra. The drive back aggravated my left ear so now both my ears are strained. I can hear, I can hear tuning but I’m hearing all the sounds inside my head.”
“I’ve had it looked at and had my ears cleaned out and all sorts of nasal sprays and steroids… I had my heart checked and everything is grand, except my ears. I’ve been told to give it six to 12 months and it’ll clear up.”
But he insisted long Covid isn’t the reason for his retirement.
“Oh, not at all. I could. Some people said to go sick for the last while, but I suffer from presentism. I keep turning up. I have to be in a box not to turn up.
“I think it is right now for a young kid to make something of the job.”
But David said he’s thinking of returning back to his studies and doing a PHD in music and hopefully help children who want to take up music.
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