In 1935 Benjamin Britten, aged just 21, published a set of 12 songs for the pupils of Clive House School, Prestatyn, where his elder brother Robert was Headmaster. He gave the songs the name ‘Friday Afternoons’ since it would be then, at the end of the school week, that his brother’s pupils would gather to sing them.

Unlike some artists, Britten did not write extensively about how he worked and what he thought about his art. We are lucky, however, that many of his scattered occasional writings about music have been brought together in a film by Emily Richardson, ‘Inside Benjamin Britten's creative process’, in which the broadcaster Zeb Soanes voices Britten himself.

Two major themes emerge from this film. First of all, the fact that music is a collective activity: that what Britten calls its ‘magic’ is a product not simply of the notes on the page, but of the combination of composer’s score, its performance, and the ears of the listener.

The magic comes from hearing the work out loud, whether simply as an audience member or as a performer oneself. The boys of Clive House School would experience the magic of the songs by taking an active part, by singing them out loud.

Secondly, the importance of place. Britten wrote best in his native county, making music that sprang from its landscapes and stories; he also liked to write with particular venues and musical forces in mind. Britten Pears Arts continues to value these two themes, which converge in our annual Big Sing. This year it will take place on 22 November, Britten’s birthday.

The Big Sing is a flagship event born out of our acclaimed Friday Afternoons school resource programme. Over the last 11 years various modern composers have written songs for pupils to perform, with children and teachers forming a massed choir.

Suffolk schoolchildren experiencing the magic of music through singing it out loud: nothing could be closer to Britten’s heart.