Exploring Snape Maltings, Suffolk
Snape Maltings in Suffolk, England is one of the world’s leading centres for music, but also has excellent art galleries, shops, cafes, nature walks and boat trips set within outstanding scenery along the River Alde. This makes Snape Maltings a great destination for a day trip to watch live music or explore everything else it has to offer.
This venue was originally made famous by Benjamin Britten, an English composer, conductor, and pianist with a range of works including opera, orchestral and chamber pieces, who converted buildings to house the large orchestral works and operas that formed part of the Aldeburgh Festival. Benjamin Britten’s vision is still evident throughout different spaces found at the Maltings.
In this post, I have set out everything you need to know about Snape Maltings, I hope it will encourage you to visit and enjoy it as much as we have done.
Table of Contents
A Brief History of Snape Maltings
Snape Maltings is a former collection of Victorian industrial buildings that once formed the largest flat floor maltings in the country. It was used for malt barley before being shipped to the breweries in London by Thames Barge.
In 1965, the malting ceased and the site was sold, and then leased to world renowned Suffolk-born composer Benjamin Britten, who turned this remarkable building into a world class concert hall and the main venue for the Aldeburgh Festival.
Music at Snape
Snape Maltings is an all-year music venue, with regular concerts and festivals, from the world-famous Aldeburgh Festival held in June to the Snape Proms held in August.
Aldeburgh Festival - The Aldeburgh Festival of Music and the Arts is one of Europe’s leading classical music events. The Aldeburgh Festival explores new music, interpretations and the rediscovery of forgotten music.
The Aldeburgh Festival was founded in 1948 by the composer Benjamin Britten, the singer Peter Pears and the librettist/producer Eric Crozier. The Festival was held at a variety of local venues over the years, but found a permanent home at Snape Maltings in 1967, when a larger venue was required.
Snape Proms - Snape Proms welcomes musicians from around the world for a series of concerts. The Proms includes a mixture of talents from bands, orchestras, folk groups and solo artists.
Snape Maltings also hosts the Creative Campus, a year round programme of residencies for musicians for all stages of their development, from under 18s to established performers, as well as community projects. Britten’s vision is still followed, that is, a place to develop new music and ideas in a unique natural landscape.
I attended school in Suffolk and each year a group of children from our school would attend the Celebration of Schools Music. This is an annual event featuring more than 1,400 performers from schools and community music groups across Suffolk. An event that has continued annually for over three decades!
Snape’s Art Galleries
Whilst Snape Maltings is primarily a music venue, it is also a centre for visual art and creativity, with music and art going hand in hand, cohabiting seamlessly at this location.
The site contains seven key gallery spaces, with a further two associated galleries within Aldeburgh.
The galleries at Snape Maltings include:
Concert Hall Gallery – The Concert Hall Gallery provides an excellent gallery space that leads to the River View Restaurant. This ensures that art is embedded into the widely used public spaces. Since lockdown in 2021, this space has been used by Sudbourne Park Printmakers, who produce a wide range of work, inspired by Suffolk. www.sudbourneprintmakers.com
Maltings Gallery – This gallery displays contemporary and traditional art from up-and-coming artists and established names. I really loved the recent collection by Emma Green, who provided a series of oil paintings inspired by the light, colours and atmosphere of the river Alde at Snape and Iken.
Lettering Arts Centre – This space is focused on the lettering arts from calligraphy to stone carving.
The Dovecote Studio – This contemporary building is set within a derelict industrial outbuilding at the site. The use of material and textures is informed by the industrial past, whilst the internal space is lined with pale spruce plywood to create a singular, austere room. Roger Hardy displayed his ‘Turning Tide’ exhibition in 2021, which comprises a body of work that symbolises his connection to place and environment and enables the viewer to explore their own ideas of humanity.
Pond Gallery – This gallery is devoted to prominent local artists. The ‘More Green than Purple’ exhibition that was held in 2021, is an interesting and vibrant mixed-media and abstract art exhibition by local artists Wendy Barlow, Patricia Lomax and Val Hampson .
The Switch Room – This space is formed from a small industrial store. It was used by Maggi Hambling and Chris Watson in 2021 to house their ‘Relic’ exhibition, which explores their response to the melting of the polar icecaps. The audience is confronted with the gradual, man-made disaster through expanded senses of sound and vision.
Quay Gallery – This space, located alongside the river, provides exhibitions by independent artists and craftworkers.
In addition, there are the two Aldeburgh galleries, Peter Pears Gallery and Garage Gallery.
The site contains a number of sculptures currently including:
Barbara Hepworths’ ‘Family of Man’ (1970)
Henry’s Moore’s ‘Reclining Figure: Bunched’ (1969)
Alison Wilding’s Migrant (2003)
Shopping at Snape Maltings
Snape Maltings contains a number of unique and independent shops that provide something different from high street shops, including:
Food Hall – This shop sells locally produced food and freshly baked produce.
House & Garden – This shop focuses on home furnishings and includes everything from sofas to kitchenware. It also includes a toy shop.
The Craft Shop – This shop sells handmade artisan products, including pottery, and jewellery.
The Maltings Gallery – This gallery also acts as a shop to buy prints of the art on display.
Greenroom – A florist.
The Early Music shop – This shop has an excellent and unique selection of specialist musical instruments.
The Lettering Arts Centre – This gallery also sells a number of gifts and prints, focused on lettering.
Snape Antiques Centre – An antique shop.
Nature along the River Alde
Snape Maltings is located in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and sits alongside the River Alde. It is an excellent base in which to explore local nature and the best way to explore it is by river or by foot, with a number of boat trips setting out from the historic quay at Snape Maltings and various walking routes along the river edge.
Snape Maltings also sits on the Suffolk Coastal Cycle Route 41, which takes the cyclist to Orford and Wickham Market.
Getting to Snape Maltings
Snape Maltings is located in the village of Snape, which is about 5 miles from Aldeburgh.
The site is located off the B1069, and is about a 10 minute drive form the A12. There is free car parking on site.
The closest train station is located at Saxmundham, which is about 4 miles away and provides regular services to Ipswich and London.
