Aldeburgh Music

Aldeburgh Music

Charity information

Aldeburgh Music

Aldeburgh Music is a place of energy and inspiration for music and the arts. The legendary festival was founded in 1948 by the composer Benjamin Britten, singer Peter Pears and writer Eric Crozier.

Founded 1948

  • Mission statement

    Aldeburgh Music’s mission is to be a leading international performance centre with education and artist development at its heart:

    Building on the Britten–Pears legacy, we are committed to inspiring and challenging today’s musicians. International in outlook, yet with a strong sense of our Suffolk roots. Aldeburgh’s unique artistic model is a “talent escalator” supporting musicians at all stages of their development:

    • young people of any ability (Aldeburgh Education)
    • young musicians with exceptional potential (Aldeburgh Young
    Musicians)
    • emerging professionals (Britten–Pears Young Artist Programme)
    • established artists (Aldeburgh Residencies).

    All of this activity feeds into our international festival and a wider year-round performance programme which together make Aldeburgh a world-class centre for producing new work, touring and distributing music and enriching the artistic lives of all those who perform and participate here.

  • Aims

    Aldeburgh Music aims to:

    • In the spirit of Benjamin Britten, developing musical and artistic talent is at the heart of what we do, from the young and exceptional musician to the professional artist or composer.
    • To commission new work,musical and from other other art forms. We aim to facilitate artists to cross pollinate, have new ideas and explore other genres as well as traditional forms of music making.
    • We remain true to our founder's principles, seeking new works and themes for the Festival. Providing a wide range of music for Snape Proms as well as being a year round home for music education.
    • We aim to make music friendly and accessible. We make close relationships with amateur musicians, our wider community; schools and educational organisations, prisons and a large group of volunteers.
  • Overview

    Established: June 1948

    Registered Charity Number: 261383

    Board members: 10

    Full time staff: 31

    Part time staff: 32

    Volunteers: 155

    Phone number: 01728 687150

    Address: Snape Maltings Concert Hall, Snape, Suffolk IP17 1SP

    View charity accounts on the Charity Commission website

  • The Britten Centenary Fund

    2013 is a landmark year for Aldeburgh Music as we celebrate the Britten Centenary. Our... More