Benjamin Britten

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(1913 – 1976)

Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh, OM (1913–1976) was a British composer, conductor, and pianist.

Britten was born on 22nd November 1913 in Lowestoft in Suffolk, the son of a dentist and a talented amateur musician. He began composing prolifically as a child, and in 1927 began private lessons with Frank Bridge. He also studied, less happily, at the Royal College of Music under John Ireland and with some input from Ralph Vaughan Williams. Although ultimately held back by his parents (at the suggestion of College staff), Britten had also intended to study with Alban Berg in Vienna. His first compositions to attract wide attention were the Sinfonietta (op.1) and a set of choral variations “A Boy was Born”, written in 1934 for the BBC Singers. The following year he met W. H. Auden with whom he collaborated on the song-cycle “Our Hunting Fathers”, radical both in politics and musical treatment, and other works. Of more lasting importance was his meeting in 1936 with the tenor Peter Pears, who was to become his life-partner and musical collaborator. In early 1939 the two of them followed Auden to America. There Britten composed Paul Bunyan, his first opera (to a libretto by Auden), as well as the first of many song-cycles for Pears; the period was otherwise remarkable for a number of orchestral works, including Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge (for string orchestra) and Sinfonia da Requiem (for full orchestra).

Britten and Pears returned to England in 1942, Britten completing the choral works Hymn to Saint Cecilia (his last collaboration with Auden) and A Ceremony of Carols during the long sea voyage.

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1		Frolicsome Finale			163
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13		The Young Person's Guide To The Orchestra: Variations And Fugue On A Theme Of Henry…			11
15		Simple Symphony, Op. 4: II. Playful Pizzicato			9

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