About us
Britten Pears Arts is a pioneering cultural charity based in Suffolk. It emerged from the determination of composer Benjamin Britten and his partner, singer Peter Pears, to ensure that everyone could enjoy and experience music. Britten Pears Arts aims to continue their legacy to develop talent, celebrate their heritage and engage with communities.
We use music to transform people’s lives, to bring communities together and enhance daily life. We want the arts to effect powerful positive change in, and for, society; or, as Britten himself would have put it, making the arts “useful.”
The organisation has a long history dating back to when Britten and Pears founded the Aldeburgh Festival in 1948 and moved into The Red House in Aldeburgh in 1957. It became Britten Pears Arts in April 2020 when Snape Maltings, formerly Aldeburgh Music, and the Britten-Pears Foundation, that ran Britten and Pears’ estate, merged.
Today, Snape Maltings and The Red House have become cultural destinations. There are independent shops, art galleries, restaurants and cafés, as well as the world-famous Snape Maltings Concert Hall. 100% of the profits from these businesses go towards the charitable work of Britten Pears Arts.
Our vision is to be both a locally relevant and internationally recognised cultural organisation, firmly rooted in the Suffolk countryside. In many ways, we are one of a kind.
Read our latest Annual Review to see our impact across all areas of our work.
What we do
Statutory information
Limited Company
Britten Pears Arts is a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales under number 980281.
Registered Office
Snape Maltings Concert Hall, Snape, Suffolk, IP17 1SP.
Charity Number
Britten Pears Arts is also registered as a charity, number 261383.
VAT Number
Britten Pears Arts is registered for VAT, registration number GB 927 3330 30.
Trading Subsidiaries
There is a wholly-owned trading subsidiary (the Britten Estate Limited, a company limited by shares registered in England and Wales under number 2063903), which is the beneficiary of the royalty income from performances of Britten’s music. This accounts for the great majority of the organisation’s income.
A separate organisation called Snape Maltings Trading Limited (Company Registration No. 1519527) is a wholly owned subsidiary of the charity and together with the Aldeburgh Music Endowment Fund (Registered Charity No. 282610), these companies form a group for financial reporting purposes.