Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T05:34:46.116Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 33 - Britten’s Performers: Those Most ‘Instrumental’

from Part IV - Wordsmiths, Designers, and Performers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 March 2022

Vicki P Stroeher
Affiliation:
Marshall University, West Virginia
Justin Vickers
Affiliation:
Illinois State University
Get access

Summary

Britten’s primary role was as a composer, but he possessed a unique ability to assemble musicians for performances which was second only to his skill at arranging notes for his compositions. His choices were impeccable in both activities. When he combined these — a specific piece composed for a specific performer — he produced music of startling originality. This chapter contextualises the instrumental music he wrote for each of the Aldeburgh Festivals that he personally directed. The focus is on select performers, many of whom function as subtexts in the music Britten created, and the premiere performances that helped to shape the festival season, including details of the original encounter that lead to the creation of the work and the collaborative process that produced such exceptional music.

Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×