This biography of Benjamin Britten provides important dates in the composer's life, a discussion concerning some of his major works and a description of his early and later life. The biography describes how Britten's early studies paid major dividends as he expanded his work to include the theatre and cinema, and discusses his relationship with influential individuals. A summary of the research concludes the biography.
¶ … Benjamin Britten
Today, Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) is best known for his instrumental, choral, and operatic compositions as well as being the co-founder of the English Opera Group and the Aldeburgh Festival (Radloff 426). Although Britten's music is likely familiar to many modern observers, his name is probably unfamiliar to most and facts about his early life even less well-known. To determine these facts and the impact of his work, this paper provides a review of the relevant peer-reviewed and scholarly literature concerning the composer, Benjamin Britten, including an in-depth analysis of one of his compositions. A summary of the research and important findings concerning Britten and his work are provided in the conclusion.
Review and Discussion
On November 22, 1913 (St. Cecilia's Day), Edward Benjamin Britten was born in Lowestoft, Suffolk, England (Craggs 3). Benjamin was the youngest child of five sons and two daughters (Brann 2) born to Robert Victor Britten, a dentist, and his wife, Edith, an amateur piano player and singer (Craggs 3). Not surprisingly, then, Benjamin's early introduction to music at age 5 years included piano lessons from his mother, but he quickly evidenced compositional talents as well (Craggs 4).
By the time Benjamin reach age 7 years, his parents believed he was ready for more advanced instruction and enrolled him in a music class at Southolme operated by Miss Ethel Astle and her sister and then viola lessons at South Lodge with Miss Audrey Alston as his instructor (Craggs 4). According to one biographer, "By 1926, [Benjamin] had passed the Associated Board Grade VII piano examinations with honours, and was continuing to compose prolifically. He was also introduced to Frank Bridge who agreed to take him as a private pupil" (Craggs 4). Until 1919, Britten remained the sole pupil of this instruction, when he began lessons with London-based Harold Samuel upon the recommendation of Bridge (Craggs 4).
These musical instructions continued until late 1928, when Britten enrolled at Gresham School at Holt, Norfolk, where he studied through mid-1930 (Craggs 4). The hard work and diligence at his lessons over the years began to pay off for Benjamin at this point. For instance, Craggs reports that, "In May [1930], Britten submitted a number of his compositions to the Royal College of Music in London. The following month he was invited to London to sit a written paper and undergo an oral examination by Ralph Vaugham Williams, John Ireland and S.P. Waddington" (4). Based on his performance at this examination, Britten was awarded a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London and began study there on September 22, 1930 (Craggs 4).
During his time at the Royal College of Music Britten's composition teacher was John Ireland and his piano teacher was Arthur Benjamin (Craggs 4). According to Craggs, "When not having lessons, Britten worked on his exercises for Ireland, practiced the piano and composed. He also became an avid concert-goer in London and subsequently acquainted with much unfamiliar and new music" (4). During his 3 years at the Royal College of Music, Britten was awarded the Ernest Farrar Prize for composition twice; in addition, he received the Sullivan Prize as well as the Cobbett Prize for his chamber music but failed twice at wining the more highly prized Mendelssohn Scholarship (Craggs 4).
Despite this temporary setback, Britten and his music were attracting an increasing amount of attention. In this regard, in late 1932, the Phantasy Quintet and a set of three part-songs with texts by Walter de la Mare were performed at a Macnaghten Lemare concert (Craggs 4). The songs were subsequently accepted by Oxford University Press' music department, making this composition his first published work (Craggs 4). One of Britten's other compositions, the Sinfonietta for 10 instruments (Opus I), was also performed at a Macnaghten Lemare concert series in 1933, the same year he matriculated from the Royal College of Music at which time he returned to his home town of Lowestoft (Craggs 4). Later than year, Britten finished work on a choral piece, A Boy was Born and met Peter Pears during a rehearsal for its broadcast performance by the BBC Singers, which was the start of a lifelong relationship, the precise nature of which remains the topic of speculation by biographers (Brann 3).
By 1935, Britten was ready to start making some money from his diligent studies and professional work and the next several years would be busy and prolific ones for Britten. For instance, early in 1935, he began work with the General Post Office Film Unit, a position that introduced him to notable film makers such as Basil Wright and Paul Rotha, the artist William Coldstream and the poet W.H. Auden (Craggs 4). By the end of the year, Britten had composed film scores for 11 short films as well as three additional scores for the Gas Association and music for "Timon of Athens and Easter 1916," a play written by Montagu Slater (Craggs 4). During the period 1936 through 1938, Britten composed nearly 50 more scores for the theatre, cinema and radio (Craggs 4). According to Craggs, beyond the foregoing, Britten also worked on pieces for the concert hall. For instance, Craggs reports that, "Our Hunting Fathers was commissioned by the 1936 Norfolk and Norwich Triennial Festival for which Auden prepared the text. He also co-operated with the composer Lennox Berkeley (1903 -- 1989) and wrote the suite Mont Juic which was performed at the 1936 ISCM Festival in Barcelona, Spain" (4).
In early 1939, Britten, accompanied by Pears, moved to Amityville, Long Island in New York where they lived with a local physician and his family where he worked on his first operetta, Paul Bunyan (Brann 4). In 1941, Britten completed his first opera, Peter Grimes. According to Seymour, "Britten's Grimes is the victim of a cruel society, which is criticised and condemned. Britten's Grimes is repulsed by and attracted to the community in which he lives, and it is this unsettling dialectic between attraction and repulsion which informs many of the opera's dramatic tensions" (42). In 1942, Britten returned to England, again accompanied by Pears (Brann 4).
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