The Britten–Pears School for Advanced Musical Studies was founded in 1977 in

Aldeburgh Aldeburgh ( ) is a coastal town in the county of Suffolk, England. Located to the north of the River Alde. Its estimated population was 2,276 in 2019. It was home to the composer Benjamin Britten and remains the centre of the international Aldeb ...

, Suffolk, following the success both of the master classes held for singers by

Peter Pears Sir Peter Neville Luard Pears ( ; 22 June 19103 April 1986) was an English tenor. His career was closely associated with the composer Benjamin Britten, his personal and professional partner for nearly forty years. Pears' musical career started ...

from 1972, and of the subsequent courses for string players. The School grew to offer a varied programme of practical and academic courses for young musicians and singers at the start of their professional career. Master classes have been taught by such distinguished visiting faculty members as

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf Dame Olga Maria Elisabeth Friederike Schwarzkopf, (9 December 19153 August 2006) was a German-born Austro-British soprano. She was among the foremost singers of lieder, and is renowned for her performances of Viennese operetta, as well as the op ...

, Murray Perahia and

Pierre Fournier Pierre Léon Marie Fournier (24 June 19068 January 1986) was a French cellist who was called the "aristocrat of cellists" on account of his elegant musicianship and majestic sound. Biography He was born in Paris, the son of a French Army ge ...

. The successor of the school, the Britten–Pears Young Artist Programme, continues to provide training for outstanding young professionals from around the world and also manages courses for the

Britten-Pears Orchestra The Britten-Pears Orchestra, formerly The Snape Maltings Training Orchestra, is the youth orchestra of the Britten-Pears Young Artists Programme at Snape Maltings, run by the Aldeburgh Festival. Since the very first course in 1972, over 10,000 ...

, formerly The Snape Maltings Training Orchestra. The contemporary composition and performance course was founded by Oliver Knussen and Colin Matthews in 1992. More recently there has been in addition a digital media course, called New Music/New Media. In September 2012, the course was led by Rolf Wallin, Tansy Davies, and Alexander Refsum Jensenius, co-founder of the Oslo Laptop Orchestra. String quartets come together each spring and present a weekly recital of "work-in-progress" at the Jubilee Hall, and in late summer the International Academy of String Quartets provides further opportunities for working on repertoire.

Menahem Pressler Menahem Pressler ( he, מנחם פרסלר; born 16 December 1923) is a German-born Israeli-American pianist. Pressler is Jewish. Following Kristallnacht, he and his immediate family fled Nazi Germany in 1939,

, Pierre-Laurent Aimard and the

Arditti Quartet The Arditti Quartet is a string quartet founded in 1974 and led by the British violinist Irvine Arditti. The quartet is a globally recognized promoter of contemporary classical music and has a reputation for having a very wide repertoire. T ...

have all taught masterclasses.

References

External links

Britten Pears Arts - Britten Pears Young Artist Programme

Aldeburgh Music - Britten-Pears Young Artists Programme

Snape Maltings - Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme

BPF: Britten-Pears Foundation - Britten-Pears School for Advanced Musical Studies

Britten-Pears - Britten-Pears Artist Programme (Greater London)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Britten-Pears School for Advanced Musical Studies 1977 establishments in the United Kingdom Private schools in Suffolk Music education in the United Kingdom