Benjamin Britten in Context
Benjamin Britten in Context
Benjamin Britten, pianist, conductor, educator, composer of  a wide range of music from large-scale operas and choral works to string quartets and songs, is acknowledged as a pivotal figure in mid-twentieth-century Britain. This volume explores the contexts for his multi-faceted career and his engagement with his contemporaries in music, art, literature, and film, British musical institutions, royal and governmental entities, and the church, as well as his ground-breaking projects, philosophical and ideological tenets. The book is thematically structured in five parts: Britten's relationships with Peter Pears, his close friends, mentors, and colleagues; musical life in Britain; his interactions with previous and contemporary generations of composers; his professional work with choreographers, librettists, stage designers, and directors; and his socio-cultural, religious, and political environment. The chapters shed light on the many opportunities and challenges of post-war British musical life that shaped Britten's creative output.
- Examines in depth the interaction between Benjamin Britten and his contemporaries, as well as the socio-cultural currents of his time
- Puts forward inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary perspectives, shedding new light on Britten's multi-faceted career
- Includes chapters from leading music scholars that explore the theory, performance and history behind Britten's works
Reviews & endorsements
‘informative and thought-provoking’ Nigel Simeone, Gramophone
‘Highly recommended.’ J. M. Edwards, Choice
Product details
July 2022Hardback
9781108496698
426 pages
231 × 158 × 27 mm
0.8kg
Available
Table of Contents
- Prologue: Positioning Britten Vicki P. Stroeher and Justin Vickers
- Part I. The Britten Circle(S):
- 1. Early mentors: The bridges, the Auden set, and the mayers of long Island Arnold Whittall
- 2. Peter Pears Justin Vickers
- 3. The open secret Nicholas Clark
- 4. Britten's circle Lucy Walker
- 5. Britten's musical assistants Christopher Scheer
- 6. Britten's publishers as advance and rear guard Philip Reed
- Part II. British Musical Life:
- 7. Composing in England Eric Saylor
- 8. Britten and Film Mervyn Cooke
- 9. Britten and the radio Alison Garnham
- 10. Television and the composer Danielle Ward-Griffin
- 11. Music critics and the press Philip Reed and Vicki P. Stroeher
- 12. Britten and English opera: Myths and a (Chequered) history Mervyn Cooke
- 13. Festival culture in the British Isles Justin Vickers
- 14. Concert life in Britain Philip Reed
- 15. Benjamin Britten and folksong Julian Onderdonk
- 16. Educating the Nation: Britten's music for young people Kate Guthrie
- Part III. Britten and Other Composers:
- 17. The compositional context: creating a voice Christopher Mark
- 18. Responding to a British musical past Michael Burden
- 19. Britten and the English musical renaissance Alain Frogley
- 20. Responding to the continent Arved Ashby
- 21. An English tradition? Christopher Mark
- 22.'An exciting time with all Russians': Anglo-Soviet musical contacts Cameron Pyke
- 23. The Avant-Garde Philip Rupprecht
- Part IV. Wordsmiths, Designers, and Performers:
- 24. W. H. Auden Vicki P. Stroeher
- 25. Eric Crozier Justin Vickers
- 26. Two librettists: Montagu slater and Ronald Duncan Ian Patterson
- 27. The wise, queer heart of Englishness: E. M. Forster Hanna Rochlitz
- 28.William Plomer's poetics of exile at home Kevin Salfen
- 29.'Don't colour them, the music will do that': Myfanwy Piper and Britten's marriage of words and music Frances Spalding
- 30. Designing and dancing Britten Kevin Salfen and Lucy Walker
- 31.Pears as illuminator, interpreter, and inspiration Justin Vickers
- 32. Britten's singers Roger Vignoles
- 33. Britten's performers: those most 'Instrumental' Thomas Schuttenhelm
- Part V. British Socio-Cultural, Religious, and Political Life:
- 34. English and British national identity in the Arts Irene Morra
- 35. Britten's landscapes Charlotte de Mille
- 36. Monarchy, royalty, and arts patronage Matthias Range
- 37. Literary leanings Nicholas Clark
- 38. Faith, spirituality, and the church Margaret Lane
- 39. The politics of the closet J. P. E. Harper-Scott
- 40. Communism, socialism, and pacifism in British politics: From the 1930s to the cold war Joanna Bullivant
- Epilogue: Britten's Legacy Arnold Whittall
- Topical bibliography for further reading
- Works cited
- Index.
