Podcast appearances and mentions of Peter Pears

I've already done a Lententide episode devoted to contraltos singing the music of Bach, but it seemed to me that in the upheaval of today's vengeful and war-hungry world, we could use another contemplative episode to provide us with meditative (and even tuneful!) music to calm our spirits. The tunefulness comes especially from recordings of favorite religious music by Gounod, Franck, and other 19th-century French composers sung by Camille Maurane, Marcel Journet, Richard Verreau, and Françoise Pollet. Also included are a live excerpt from Parsifal with Jon Vickers and Hans Knappertsbusch; the miraculous yet voiceless Hugues Cuénod performing an excerpt from the first of Couperin's Leçons de Ténèbres; the unsung German-British soprano Ilse Wolf in a live performance of the Bach Johannes-Passion conducted by Pablo Casals; Gundula Janowitz in a searing but brief aria from Mendelssohn's Paulus; excerpts from settings of the Stabat Maters of Haydn and Dvorák, sung by Alfreda Hodgson, Sena Jurinac, and Heinz Hoppe; the original version of Hendrik Andriessen's exquisite Miroir de Peine cycle for voice and organ featuring our beloved Elly Ameling; and Jennie Tourel in an excerpt from her ultra-rare recording of Hindemith's Das Marienleben preceded by Lotte Lehmanns's recitation of the same Rilke poem. The episode begins and ends with realizations by Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippett of Baroque masters Henry Purcell and Pelham Humfrey sung, respectively, by Peter Pears and John Shirley-Quirk. Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel's lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody's core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody's Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly or yearly support at whatever level you can afford.

As a belated 92nd birthday tribute to our beloved Elly Ameling, I offer another episode of the Elly and Johann Show which features her in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. If you twisted my arm, I might opine that she is simply the ideal Bach soprano, and these recordings, made between 1961 and 1981, stem from her absolute prime. In this episode, the majority of the works featured (from various cantatas, oratorios, masses, and passions), are duets, with a few trios and even a quartet thrown in for good measure. Siegmund Nimsgern, Werner Krenn, Hans Sotin, Birgit Finnilä, Yvonne Minton, Helen Watts, Elisabeth Cooymans, Peter Pears, Samuel Ramey, Norma Procter, Tom Krause, Gerald English, Marga Höffgen, and Fritz Wunderlich lend their voices in harmony with our Elly. The featured recordings teeter between early period performance efforts and my preferred “full-figured Bach” performance practice. Without exception however, the style is never heavy, never thuddy, but rather gracious, flowing, and mellifluous. The episode is capped with a stunning 1966 live performance of the soprano aria from the Matthew-Passion in which Ameling, just for a moment, restores my faith in humanity. Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel's lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody's core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody's Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly or yearly support at whatever level you can afford.

Brenda Hale, Baroness Hale of Richmond, is a former judge who served as the first female president of the Supreme Court. In 2019 she announced the court's judgement that the prorogation of Parliament was ‘unlawful, void and of no effect'. The twinkling spider brooch she wore that day caused a sensation and set social media aflame. She was the first woman and the youngest person to be appointed to the Law Commission and in 2004 became the UK's first woman law lord.Lady Hale was born in Yorkshire and read law at the University of Cambridge where she graduated top of her class. She spent almost 20 years in academia and also practised as a barrister. Later at the Law commission she led the work on what became the 1989 Children Act. Lady Hale retired as a judge in January 2020.DISC ONE: Messiah - Part 1: O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings To Zion, composed by Georg Friedrich Händel, performed by Kathleen Ferrier and The London Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult DISC TWO: Love Me Do by The Beatles DISC THREE: Move Him Into The Sun. Composed and conducted by Benjamin Britten. Performed by Peter Pears (tenor) and Galina Vishnevskaya (soprano) with the Bach Choir and the London Symphony Orchestra DISC FOUR: Part 1 Nos 4 & 5: Gloria in excelsis Deo – Et in terra pax. Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed by The Monteverdi Choir and The English Baroque Soloists and conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner DISC FIVE: The Marriage of Figaro), K. 492 Sull'Aria. Composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, performed by sopranos Charlotte Margiono and Barbara Bonney, Netherlands Opera Chorus and the Concertgebouw Orchestra DISC SIX: Hand in Hand by Glória (Ireland's Gay and Lesbian Choir) DISC SEVEN: Parry: I Was Glad, composed by Hubert Parry, performed by Westminster Abbey Choir, Simon Preston (organ) and conducted by William McKinney DISC EIGHT: Dies Irae. Composed by Giuseppe Verdi, performed by Swedish Radio Choir and the Eric Ericson Chamber Choir, with the Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Claudio AbbadoBOOK CHOICE: A Desert Island survival manual LUXURY ITEM: A solar-powered computer with sudoku puzzles and a writing application CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Part 1 Nos 4 & 5: Gloria in excelsis Deo – Et in terra pax, composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed by The Monteverdi Choir and The English Baroque Soloists, conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

The Water is Wide – przepiękna, smutna i stara szkocka ballada. No właśnie przepiękna i smutna niewątpliwie, ale jak stara? Posłuchajcie mojej opowieści. Audycja zawiera utwory: “On Green Dolphin Street”  wyk. Ella Fitzgerald & Joe Pass, sł. Ned Washington, muz. Bronisław Kaper “On Green Dolphin Street”, (w tle) wyk. Keith Jarrett, Jack Dejohnette i Gary Peacock, sł. Ned Washington, muz. Bronisław Kaper “The Water is Wide” (w tle), wyk. Pete Seeger, sł. i muz. Trad. “The Water is Wide”, wyk. Barry Dransfield, sł. i muz. Trad. “The Water is Wide” (w tle), wyk. Livia Lyette, muz. Trad. “O Waly, Waly”, wyk. Peter Pears (tenor), Benjamin Britten (piano), sł. i muz. Trad. “The Water is Wide”, wyk. Pete Seeger, sł. i muz. Trad. “To Lay Down Your Weary Tune”, wyk. Bob Dylan, sł. i muz. Bob Dylan “Farewell”, wyk. Bob Dylan, sł. Bob Dylan muz. Trad. (Leaving Liverpool) “The Water is Wide”, wyk. Eva Cassidy, sł. i muz. Trad. “The Water is Wide”, wyk. Uwe Karcher, arr. Uwe Karcher muz. Trad. #folk, # szanty

La Segunda Guerra Mundial es, sin ningún género de duda y con Darmstadt como prueba, el factor temporal determinante de la revolución vivida en la música de la segunda mitad de siglo. La música salvó a muchos, si no de la contienda, al menos de parte de sus traumáticas consecuencias._____Has escuchadoAutobiografía intelectual. Luis de Pablo. Entrevista realizada al compositor el 25 de marzo de 2010 en la Fundación Juan March: [Web]Cuarteto de cuerda nº. 8 en do menor. Largo (1960) / Dmitri Shostakovich. Fitzwilliam String Quartet. Decca (1992)Cuarteto n.º 3, op. 46 (1943) / Viktor Ullmann. Cuarteto Bennewitz. Grabación sonora realizada en directo en la sala de conciertos de la Fundación Juan March, el 3 de marzo de 2021. Dentro del ciclo “Terezín: componer bajo el terror. La música de cámara en Terezín”“Tomás Marco habla sobre la “música confinada”. YouTube Vídeo. Publicado por Fundación BBVA, 27 de septiembre de 2022: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q02yvqKCDEMWar Requiem (1962) / Benjamin Britten. Galina Vishnevskaya, soprano; Peter Pears, tenor; Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, barítono; The Bach Choir & London Symphony Orchestra Chorus; London Symphony Orchestra; Benjamin Britten, director. Decca (1985)_____Selección bibliográficaARNOLD, Ben, “Music, Meaning, and War: The Titles of War Compositions”. International Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology of Music, vol. 22, n.º 1 (1991), pp. 19-28*BOTSTEIN, Leon, “After Fifty Years: Thoughts on Music and the End of World War II”. The Musical Quarterly, vol. 79, n.º 2 (1995), pp. 225-230*DINGLE, Christopher Philip (ed.), The Cambridge History of Music Criticism. Cambridge University Press, 2022*FANNING, David (ed.), The Routledge Handbook to Music under German Occupation, 1938-1945: Propaganda, Myth and Reality. Routledge, 2020*FUNDACIÓN JUAN MARCH, “Terezín: componer bajo el terror” [Programa de concierto]. Ciclo de miércoles 24 de febrero al 10 de marzo de 2021: [PDF]GUILBAUT, Serge, Manuel J. Borja-Villel, Be-Bomb: The Transatlantic War of Images and All That Jazz, 1946-1956. Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, 2007*HEILE, Björn, Charles Wilson, et al. (eds.), The Routledge Companion to Modernism in Music. Routledge, 2019*JAROCINSKI, Stefan, “Polish Music after World War II”. The Musical Quarterly, vol. 51, n.º 1 (1965), pp. 244-258*KRADER, Barbara, “Soviet Research on Russian Folk Music since World War II”. Ethnomusicology, vol. 7, n.º 3 (1963), pp. 252-261*ORAMO, Ilkka, “Sibelius, Bartók, and the ‘Anxiety of Influence' in Post World War II Finnish Music”. Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae, vol. 47, n.º 3/4 (2006), pp. 467-479*POTTER, Pamela M., “What Is ‘Nazi Music'?”. The Musical Quarterly, vol. 88, n.º 3 (2005), pp. 428-455*ROGERS, Julian C., Resonant Recoveries: French Music and Trauma Between the World Wars. Oxford University Press, 2021*ROSS, Alex, El ruido eterno. Seix Barral, 2009*SCHWARZ, Boris, “Soviet Music since the Second World War”. The Musical Quarterly, vol. 51, n.º 1 (1965), pp. 259-281*VYBORNY, Zdenek y William Lichtenwanger, “Czech Music Literature since World War II”. Notes, vol. 16, n.º 4 (1959), pp. 539-546*WALLNER, Bo, “Scandinavian Music after the Second World War”. The Musical Quarterly, vol. 51, n.º 1 (1965), pp. 111-143* *Documento disponible para su consulta en la Sala de Nuevas Músicas de la Biblioteca y Centro de Apoyo a la Investigación de la Fundación Juan March

durée : 00:06:40 - "The Old Lute" extrait du cycle "Songs from the Chinese Op.58" de Benjamin Britten - "The Chinese songs" est un cycle de six mélodies, toutes influencées par l''Extrême Orient. Compositeur de génie, Benjamin Britten est également pianiste. Il accompagne dans ses récitals son compagnon, le grand ténor Peter Pears, pour lequel il écrira énormément." Sébastien Llinarès

“The course of true love never did run smooth.”  Shakespeare's iconic "A Midsummer Night's Dream" gives us some of the Bard's most memorable (and ridiculous) characters and situations.  Benjamin Britten, together with his partner Peter Pears, so appreciated the merits of Shakespeare's play that they faithfully adapted the script into a libretto for Britten's 1960 opera of the same name. The good-natured story shifts among fairy and human characters and their antics on a midsummer night.  Observing the chaos, Puck, puckish henchman to the fairy king, exclaims, “Lord, what fools these mortals be!” True enough, but there's plenty of entertaining foolishness here from mortals and fairies alike. And, after all, doesn't love make fools of us all? Hosted by Pat and Kathleen For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.  

Ha sido traspasado por nuestros pecados, triturado por nuestras iniquidades” (Isaías 53: 5) El 7 de abril de 1724 se presenta por primera vez en la iglesia de San Nicolás de Leipzig, la Pasión según San Juan de Johann Sebastian Bach. Para conmemorar los 300 años del estreno de esta obra, con una historia de fe y música, con la grabación histórica en inglés, con la batuta de Benjamin Britten con el tenor Peter Pears.

durée : 00:24:59 - Benjamin Britten : A Ceremony of Carols - par : Anne-Charlotte Rémond - "Ben a très bien travaillé sur le bateau. On lui a pris son Hymne à Sainte Cécile et son Concerto pour clarinette à la douane à New York, alors il a réécrit et fini l'Hymne (vraiment charmant !) et il a aussi composé sept Christmas Carols (chants de Noël) pour voix de femmes et harpe" . Peter Pears - réalisé par : Philippe Petit

Today's episode explores the lives and loves of two of the most significant figures in twentieth century music: Benjamin Britten, the dean of British composers and the tenor Peter Pears, his partner, lover, inspiration and muse for nearly forty years. When as a lost young gay boy I first encountered their music-making I intuited that these two men were lovers, that they represented a way forward for me out of a lonely and forlorn childhood. Whether in the many songs and cycles that Britten fashioned for him or the operatic roles, beginning with the title role of Peter Grimes, that were tailor-made for him, Pears remains the ideal interpreter of his partner's music, possessed as he was of a distinctive (some would say peculiar) voice, supple, reedy yet surprisingly powerful, along with pinpoint musical precision, plangent expressivity and dramatic aptitude. The episode features excerpts from many of Britten's most explicitly gay compositions, surprising for a man living in Britain while sex between men was still illegal, including the operas Peter Grimes, Curlew River, Billy Budd, and Death in Venice and his settings of poetry by Michelangelo, Shakespeare, Auden, and Francis Quarles. We also hear Pears and Britten in live and recorded performance of songs and arias by other composers, including composers Britten revered (Schumann, Schubert, Tchaikovsky, and Frank Bridge), and those of whose music he was much less fond (including Vaughan Williams and Brahms). The episode contains more biographical information than your typical Countermelody episode, and does not shy away from some of the thorniest questions that one must confront when discussing these two controversial figures. But in the end it is first and foremost a celebration of the music Britten and Pears made together and the love they shared for 40 years. The episode begins with a heartfelt (and heartbroken) tribute to the great Glenda Jackson, who died this week at the age of 87. Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel's lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody's core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody's Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly support at whatever level you can afford. Bonus episodes available exclusively to Patreon supporters are currently available and further bonus content including interviews and livestreams is planned for the upcoming season.

In Floodlandia, we celebrate this day by channeling the grand, green spirit of William Butler Yeats. We do several songs based on verses by this beloved Nobel laureate. Our favorite is “Down by the Salley Gardens,” which Yeats published in his 1889 volume The Wanderings of Oisin and Other Poems.In notes about the work, Years once said the poem was "an attempt to reconstruct an old song from three lines imperfectly remembered by an old peasant woman in the village of Ballisodare, Sligo, who often sings them to herself."In fact, Yeats's original title of his poem was "An Old Song Re-Sung.” Precisely what old song Yeats was thinking of we don't really know, though researchers think it might have been a now-obscure ballad called “The Rambling Boys of Pleasure.” That song's first verse spoke of lovers meeting in a garden, then added, “She bade me take life easy just as the leaves fall from the tree / But I being young and foolish, with my darling did not agree."Yeats' poem wouldn't appear under today's better known title until it was reprinted in a 1895 volume.But What's a Salley Garden?To find out, let's start with a “where.”As Yeats' notes suggest, the location of the poem is the banks of the river at Ballysadare, and that happens to be where the residents used to cultivate trees to provide roof thatching material.That material was known locally as “salley” or “sally,” a form of the Standard English word "sallow," i.e., a tree of the genus Salix. And that is close in sound to an Irish word, saileach, which means “willow.”What About the Melody?We don't know what, if any, tune Yeats had in mind for his poem, but in 1909, Irish composer Herbert Hughes, who also was a frequent arranger of folk songs, set the verse to a traditional air called "The Maids of Mourne Shore.” While over the years other different melodies also have been applied to the poem (notably by composers Rebecca Clarke and John Ireland in the 1920s), today it is usually to the tune of "The Maids of Mourne Shore" that most performers sing and play it.The earliest recordings of the song were in the 1940s by John McCormack, Peter Pears and Kathleen Ferrier. Our Take on the TuneThe Flood started doing this song about 1979, right after Roger Samples and Charlie Bowen learned it from a beloved album, Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy, released in 1976.Rog always said he thought the melody was buried in the very genes of Irish people, adding, “Every time we do that song, I feel like the ghosts of my ancestors come into the room!”“Salley Gardens” has been in The Flood's repertoire ever since, even tucked away among the tunes the band recorded on its first commercial album two decades ago.This current version — with solos by Dan Cox and Sam St. Clair — was recorded in a recent jam session just to be our gift today. To Continue Your St. Pat CelebrationWant a bit more of the Old Sod for St. Patrick's Day 2023? Sure (and begorrah)! Just link in to the St. Patrick Blend in our free Radio Floodango music streaming service.Erin go Bragh, y'all! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 1937flood.substack.com

Avui hem sentit: Quartet de corda n

Avui hem sentit: "Ballad of heros", op. 14; "Sinfonia da Requiem", op. 20. Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) va viure la seva infantesa i joventut en l'Europa d'entreguerres, submergida en un ambient social i pol

Avui hem sentit: "A thousand gleaming fires", per a tenor i corda; "Advance democracy" per a doble cor a capella; Variacions sobre un tema de Franck Bridge, per a orquestra de corda, op. 10; "Les illuminations" per a tenor i orquestra de corda, op. 18 (selecci

Avui hem sentit: "Soir

Avui hem sentit: "A Hymn to the Virgin"; "Sailing" (d'"A holiday diary", op. 5); "Friday afternoons" per a cor infantil i piano (selecci

In the first episode of our two part series on Benjamin Britten, we get a brief overview of Britten's prolific musical output, his musical influences, and the huge impact that Peter Pears had on his life and work. Written and presented by Jane Potter Britten: Roger Carr produced by Ashley Daniel Foot and Jane Potter audio editing by Jack Goodison musical clearances: Ashley Daniel Foot and Vancouver Opera

Something about this week's episode has really gotten to me. I guess I'm just madly in love with the melodies of Francis Poulenc, and as a result, increasingly in love with the artistry of Pierre Bernac. These two formed an artistic partnership similar in intensity to that shared by Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears, except that in the case of the Gallic couple, this alliance did not include a romantic element. In spite of that, the pair achieved an artistic intimacy that is sometimes almost painfully honest. Maybe it's that part of their story that so moves me: that two gay men, neither one sexually involved with the other, still achieved, on an altogether different plane, the deepest kind of intimacy. This episode features performances of the duo in melodies by Poulenc set to texts by Guillaume Apollinaire, Paul Éluard and Louise de Vilmorin, as well as songs by Chabrier, Debussy, Chausson, and Samuel Barber. We also hear Bernac performing Bach and Schumann in collaboration with Robert Casadesus, Charles Munch, and Roger Désormière; and Poulenc accompanying singers Denise Duval, Hugues Cuénod, Geneviève Touraine, and Bernard Kruysen in both live and studio recordings. The episode features extensive discussion, mostly from Bernac's book on Poulenc and his songs, of Poulenc's devotion to poetry and his very particular compositional method of getting to the heart of a poem.

Synopsis On today's date in 1962, Benjamin Britten's “War Requiem” for soprano, tenor, baritone, chorus, and orchestra, had its premiere performance at Coventry Cathedral in England. The Cathedral had been virtually destroyed in World War II bombing, and Britten's big choral work was commissioned to celebrate its restoration and reconsecration. Britten was a committed pacifist, and his “War Requiem” text combines poems by Wilfred Owen, who had been killed in the First World War, with the traditional Latin text of the Mass for the Dead. For the premiere, Britten requested soloists representing nations who had fought during the Second World War. With Britten's life-time partner, tenor Peter Pears, representing England, the plan was to have a German baritone, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, and a Russian soprano, Galina Vishnevskaya, for the 1962 premiere. As a young man, Fischer-Dieskau had been drafted into the German army, and had been a prisoner of war, but was eager to participate. Unfortunately, the Soviet authorities wouldn't issue a visa for soprano Vishnevskaya to sing in the new Britten piece. “How can you, a Soviet woman, stand next to a German and an Englishman and perform such a political work,” they told her. The British soprano Heather Harper substituted for her. For many, Britten's “War Requiem” is his masterpiece, and shortly after its premiere, Britten wrote to his sister, “The idea did come off, I think... I hope it will make people think a bit.” Music Played in Today's Program Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976) — War Requiem (soloists; choirs; BBC Scottish Symphony; Martyn Brabbins, cond.) Naxos 8.553558

The Serenade's status as a darkly dazzling 20th-century classic is founded on Britten's unerring ear for finding and setting English poetry, coupled with his instinctive sense of instrumental and vocal virtuosity. Its six texts, from Ben Johnson to Tennyson, deal with night and the corruption of innocence, themes which preoccupied Britten throughout his career. Both the solo writing and the interplay between voice and horn are based on the strengths of the two musicians for which it was written, Britten's long-time partner, Peter Pears and the horn player Dennis Brain. They made the first recording in 1944, a year after the premiere, and since then many subsequent recordings, most often featuring British tenors, have followed.

Tristan & Isolde, Romeo & Juliet, Pelléas & Mélisande are three pairs of lovers who have fired composers' imaginations. Films like Love Story, Love Actually, and Shakespeare in Love are made all the more poignant by their musical scores. And where would The Beatles, 10cc, or Queen have been without All you need is love, I'm not in love, and Love of my life? This lecture shows how there is no emotion more likely to inspire musical creativity than love.A lecture by Jeremy SummerlyThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/music-loveGresham College has been giving free public lectures since 1597. This tradition continues today with all of our five or so public lectures a week being made available for free download from our website. There are currently over 2,000 lectures free to access or download from the website.Website: http://www.gresham.ac.ukTwitter: http://twitter.com/GreshamCollegeFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: http://www.instagram.com/greshamcollege

In the spring of 1942, Benjamin Britten and his partner Peter Pears left the United States on board a Swedish cargo ship to cross the perilous waters of the North Atlantic. On a stopover in Nova Scotia, Britten picked up a book of medieval poems and whilst the ship navigated ferocious winds and dodged U boats, he used some of them in the first draft of what was to become 'A Ceremony of Carols'. From the confines of a miserable and airless cabin he created a work of such joy and energy that it has become a Christmas staple for the high clear voices of boy trebles - or women's choir - and harp. To discuss the enduring appeal of the music and the spiritual meaning of 'A Ceremony of Carols', Ernie Rea is joined by a distinguished trio of musicians. Michael Berkeley is a composer, broadcaster, and crossbench peer. Benjamin Britten was his godfather. Anna Lapwood is a conductor, organist and Director of Music at Pembroke College, Cambridge. She was a professional harp player. And the Rev Lucy Winkett is Rector of St James Piccadilly in the centre of London. Before becoming a priest, she trained as a singer at the Royal College of Music. Producer: Helen Lee

Anteriormente conocida como PauCálogos Musicales, Una Cosa Rara es una sección que da voz a obras, compositores e historias del mundo de la música que en ocasiones quedan fuera de los focos. En este programa, Pau Hernández y David Antón os invitan a descubrir un ciclo de canciones en italiano del compositor inglés Benjamin Britten que supone una preciosa declaración de amor hacia Peter Pears. Recordad que en esta nueva temporada de Conocimientos Musicales tenemos programa 4 días a la semana, de manera que estad atentos a las redes porque mañana mismo os traemos un formato distinto(!!!).

This episode we're joined by Martin Green who is challenging you to reimagine Lyke Wake Dirge, an ancient funeral chant about the soul's journey through purgatory. Martin is a multi-award winning musician and composer who has collaborated with many artists and musicians including the likes of Eliza Carthy, Joan Baez, Anais Mitchell and Aidan Moffatt. As a member of Lau he has won four BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards for Best Group and in 2015 he was nominated in the Best Musician category. In 2019 he won the Ivor Novello award for his sound walk “Aeons” that was part of The Great Exhibition of the North. We first came across Martin's work in his 2015 show Flit, a multimedia, collaborative song cycle on the theme of migration. As a performer steeped in traditional music but with a process informed by sampling, electronics, and interdisciplinary storytelling, we wanted to get his insight on how he traverses these multiple planes Check out Martin's recent project The Portal here. /// TAKE PART /// Charts: example score, chords & lyrics (.pdf) Playlist: Spotify playlist of existing versions of Lyke Wake Dirge. Find a quick guide on how to submit here. Martin will be back to listen to your takes in the second part of this episode released on Monday 27 September. If you'd like to be included in the podcast then try and get your version to us by Monday 20th September to get your versions included in the podcast. Drop us a message if you have any questions. /// COMMUNITY /// If you're interested in getting deeper into the conversation, come and join our group on Facebook. There's been some amazing chats over the last month with people sharing demos, feedback and ideas. /// MUSIC CREDITS /// 10:54 - Strange Sky - Martin Green (featuring Becky Unthank) [From Flit] 17:10 - Etteridge - Martin Green (featuring Brìghde Chaimbeul) [From The Portal] 19:46 - A Place Of Crisps And Pianos - Martin Green 28:48 - Lyke Wake Dirge - The Young Tradition 34:30 - Lyke Wake Dirge - Martin Green (featuring Becky Unthank) 39:41 - A Lyke Wake Dirge - Alasdair Roberts 42:06 - Dirge from Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings - Benjamin Britten (featuring Peter Pears) 43:45 - Lyke Wake Dirge - Trumpets of Death 46:55 - Lyke Wake Dirge - Tom Chapman, Claire Chapman and Dave Allen (members of the Lyke Wake Walking Club) Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Latest news and more at oldtunesfreshtakes.com Hosted by Jack The Robot and Hevelwood

Composer Benjamin Britten, a central figure of 20th-century British music (Peter Grimes, The Turn of the Screw, Ceremony of Carols) and renowned tenor Peter Pears were together from 1939 until Britten's death in 1976. During Britten's lifetime, neither spoke publicly about their relationship or sexuality—homosexuality in England was illegal until its partial decriminalization in 1967. San Francisco-born and -based arts educator, performer, composer and conductor Cole Thomason-Redus presents an illuminating 21st century perspective on their musical partnership and private life. Cole is educational content curator in the Department of Diversity, Equity & Community at San Francisco Opera, where he is host of the weekly online series "Opera Aficionado." Cole has also been director of education for Chanticleer, curator of classical music at Apple, Inc., and classical music analyst for the Music Genome Project at Pandora Media, Inc. MLF ORGANIZER Dr. Anne W. Smith NOTES MLF: Arts SPEAKERS Cole Thomason-Redus Educational Content Curator, Department of Diversity, Equity & Community, San Francisco Opera; Host, "Opera Aficionado"; Upper DivisioDirector, Marin Girls Chorus; Associate Conductor, National Children's Chorus In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on June 29th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Composer Benjamin Britten, a central figure of 20th-century British music (Peter Grimes, The Turn of the Screw, Ceremony of Carols) and renowned tenor Peter Pears were together from 1939 until Britten's death in 1976. During Britten's lifetime, neither spoke publicly about their relationship or sexuality—homosexuality in England was illegal until its partial decriminalization in 1967. San Francisco-born and -based arts educator, performer, composer and conductor Cole Thomason-Redus presents an illuminating 21st century perspective on their musical partnership and private life. Cole is educational content curator in the Department of Diversity, Equity & Community at San Francisco Opera, where he is host of the weekly online series "Opera Aficionado." Cole has also been director of education for Chanticleer, curator of classical music at Apple, Inc., and classical music analyst for the Music Genome Project at Pandora Media, Inc. MLF ORGANIZER Dr. Anne W. Smith NOTES MLF: Arts SPEAKERS Cole Thomason-Redus Educational Content Curator, Department of Diversity, Equity & Community, San Francisco Opera; Host, "Opera Aficionado"; Upper DivisioDirector, Marin Girls Chorus; Associate Conductor, National Children's Chorus In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on June 29th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Synopsis Today is National Hot Dog Day, but we're taking this opportunity to celebrate the non-grill variety, namely the Weiner dog or dachshund, a breed beloved of some famous composers and performers. Leonard Bernstein was passionate about the many dachshund he owned, all named Henry, and once on a flight to Paris, booked a seat for a furry passenger named “Henry Bernstein.” When composer Benjamin Britten and tenor Peter Pears moved into their house in Aldeburgh, the brick wall surrounding the property soon sported signs in English, German, and Latin, warning “Beware of the Dog,” “Bisseger Hund,” and “Caveat Canem,” lest passersby ankles be savaged by their classically-named dachshunds, Klithe and Jove.  Britten's friend and frequent collaborator, the Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, also a dachshund owner, presented Britten and Pears with an additional warning sign in Russian. We're told that Rostropovich's miniature, long-haired dachshund, Pooks, upon command, would play the piano with its front paws, then, after the humans' appreciative applause died down, would walk up and down the keyboard as an encore. “Pooks” even gets a shout-out in Leonard Bernstein's short orchestral tribute to Rostropovich entitled “Slava!” – at one point in the score members of the orchestra are invited call out the talented dog's name. Music Played in Today's Program Leonard Bernstein (1918 – 1990): Slava! A Political Overture (Israel Philharmonic Orchestra; Leonard Bernstein, cond.) Naxos 8.559813

Synopsis Today is National Hot Dog Day, but we're taking this opportunity to celebrate the non-grill variety, namely the Weiner dog or dachshund, a breed beloved of some famous composers and performers. Leonard Bernstein was passionate about the many dachshund he owned, all named Henry, and once on a flight to Paris, booked a seat for a furry passenger named “Henry Bernstein.” When composer Benjamin Britten and tenor Peter Pears moved into their house in Aldeburgh, the brick wall surrounding the property soon sported signs in English, German, and Latin, warning “Beware of the Dog,” “Bisseger Hund,” and “Caveat Canem,” lest passersby ankles be savaged by their classically-named dachshunds, Klithe and Jove.  Britten's friend and frequent collaborator, the Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, also a dachshund owner, presented Britten and Pears with an additional warning sign in Russian. We're told that Rostropovich's miniature, long-haired dachshund, Pooks, upon command, would play the piano with its front paws, then, after the humans' appreciative applause died down, would walk up and down the keyboard as an encore. “Pooks” even gets a shout-out in Leonard Bernstein's short orchestral tribute to Rostropovich entitled “Slava!” – at one point in the score members of the orchestra are invited call out the talented dog's name. Music Played in Today's Program Leonard Bernstein (1918 – 1990): Slava! A Political Overture (Israel Philharmonic Orchestra; Leonard Bernstein, cond.) Naxos 8.559813

HAPPY PRIDE! This June join Skye and Beth as they explore two very different paths to love. They start their dive with the sexual awakening and devastating drama of Alison Bechdel's Fun Home and follow up with the sweet, sentimental letters of Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears.

It’s been a year since the pandemic sent us all into various degrees of lockdown, panic, and depression. In certain parts of the world there is no end in sight, while in other parts, medical expertise is being blatantly defied as lockdown measures are carelessly lifted. I did a survey of my friends and listeners this week regarding their favorite sad songs, and I got hit with an avalanche of a wide range of not-happy music. In this episode I am limiting myself to so-called “classical” music. Because the music itself is so heavy, I impersonate (at the top of the episode) a radio announcer for WOKE-FM, a fictional Milwaukee “Top 40 Classical Radio Station,” who is taking calls from all over the world from listeners requesting their favorite sad music. These spurious callers have invariably good taste, and request some glorious music, albeit very sad indeed, by some transcendent performers, including Irmgard Seefried, Maria Callas, Janet Baker, Pierre Bernac, Nan Merriman, Lois Marshall, Peter Pears, and two beautiful French sopranos, Renée Doria and Andréa Guiot, who, at extremely advanced ages, each recently departed this earth. Composers from Dowland, Rameau, and Monteverdi are represented, alongside Poulenc, Schubert, Mahler, Debussy, and Stravinsky. The episode also includes guest vocal appearances by singers, including Cathy Berberian, Magda Olivero, Charles Panzéra, Jorma Hynninen, and Bethany Beardslee, who will receive full-episode treatment in the near future. Ultimately, we return to the atmosphere of a normal Countermelody episode, and are deeply moved by the singers, composers, and music represented. Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” Occasional guests from the “business” (singers, conductors, composers, coaches, and teachers) lend their distinctive insights. At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. Please visit the Countermelody website (www.countermelodypodcast.com) for additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. And please head to my Patreon page at www.patreon.com/countermelody to pledge your monthly support at whatever level you can afford. Bonus episodes available only to Patreon supporters are currently available.

Wenige Wochen nach Ende des zweiten Weltkriegs hat in London Brittens erste Oper Premiere, die ihn schlagartig berühmt macht. In dem vielschichtigen Außenseiter-Drama um den Fischer Peter Grimes verarbeitet der junge Komponist auch seine eigenen Diskriminierungserfahrungen als Homosexueller. (Autor: Michael Lohse)

durée : 00:28:39 - Avec François Porcile - par : Philippe Venturini - Originaire de la région du Suffolk, Benjamin Britten (1913–1976) est élève de Frank Bridge & boursier au Royal College of Music de Londres. D’abord compositeur pour le cinéma, en 1937, il rencontre le ténor Peter Pears (1910–1986) qui deviendra son compagnon, avec qui il s’exilera 3 ans aux USA... - réalisé par : Laurent Lefrançois

Close personal and professional relationships are explored. We recall those of Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonynge; Galina Vishnevskaya and Mstislav Rostropovich; Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears; and Roberto Alagna and his brothers. The post All in the Family appeared first on WFMT.

For a special one-hour program beginning at 4:30pm, Larry showcases the talents of gay composers Gian Carlo Menotti, Reynaldo Hahn, and Michael Tippett. Also featured are Peter Pears, Nathan Lane, Josephine Baker, Donald Gramm, and pianists, Earl Wild, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, and more. The post A Program for Gay Pride Weekend appeared first on WFMT.

Venture into a twilight world with Natalie Dessay singing the “Shadow Song” from Meyerbeer’s Dinorah. Peter Pears delves into the “Foggy, Foggy Dew” and Fred Astaire quite enjoys “A Foggy Day (In London Town).” All alone, Judy Garland offers a heartfelt “Me and My Shadow.” The post Shadows and Fog appeared first on WFMT.

Topics include: the background to the composer Benjamin Britten, his relationship with the tenor Peter Pears, their lives together at The Red House, and what visitors can experience when they come to the house. Also discussed is how ‘difficult’ some people find Britten’s music, and suggestions of how to get to know it. Plus, what our contributors have been listening to lately.To find out more, visit our podcast page on brittenpears.orgTwitter: https://twitter.com/BrittenOfficialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrittenOfficialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/BrittenOfficial/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/brittenofficial

durée : 00:24:59 - Benjamin Britten : A Ceremony of Carols - par : Anne-Charlotte Rémond - "Ben a très bien travaillé sur le bateau. On lui a pris son Hymne à Sainte Cécile et son Concerto pour clarinette à la douane à New York, alors il a réécrit et fini l'Hymne (vraiment charmant !) et il a aussi composé sept Christmas Carols (chants de Noël) pour voix de femmes et harpe" . Peter Pears - réalisé par : Philippe Petit

Classicist Bettany Hughes has traced the history of the goddess known as Venus or Aphrodite. Originally depicted with a phallus on her head, Venus was later drawn and sculpted as a beautiful naked woman. Hughes tells Andrew Marr why this powerful deity of love was thought to corrupt and to inspire. Tenor Mark Padmore depicts the irrationality of desire in Benjamin Britten's Death in Venice. He plays the lead role in the Royal Opera House's new production, based on Thomas Mann's novella, in which a burnt-out writer succumbs to obsessive love. Britten wrote the main part for his partner, Peter Pears, with whom he lived through decades of homophobia. Unconscious desires and strange fantasies play out in the work of Dora Maar, one of the great Surrealist artists. Emma Lewis has curated an exhibition of Maar's photography and paintings, revealing an artist whose striking imagery rivalled that of her more famous lover, Picasso. Historian of philosophy Clare Carlisle discusses the Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza, one of the first thinkers to interrogate our emotional life. George Eliot translated his 17th-century masterpiece, the Ethics, into English. Eliot also 'translated' his ideas into literary form. Her novel Middlemarch draws on Spinoza's ideas about human flourishing and love, shown through different happy and unhappy marriages. Producer: Hannah Sander

durée : 01:57:57 - Relax ! du lundi 07 octobre 2019 - par : Lionel Esparza - Nous revenons sur l'histoire de l'opéra à New York au cours des deux derniers siècles. Elle commence en 1805, bien avant la naissance du Metropolitan Opera, avec l'arrivée en Amérique du célèbre librettiste de Mozart Lorenzo da Ponte, qui a fui l'Europe avec sa femme pour échapper à ses créanciers. - réalisé par : Antoine Courtin

durée : 00:15:03 - Britten, Sérénade, par Benjamin Britten et Peter Pears - Cet enregistrement de la Sérénade de Benjamin Britten par le ténor Peter Pears, le corniste Barry Tuckwell et l'Orchestre symphonique de Londres placé sous la direction du compositeur en personne, a été réalisé en 1963 par Decca.

Martin Zingsheim über Brittens Klassiker der Musikerziehung. In seinen Variationen über ein Rondo von Henry Purcell dekliniert der Komponist 1945 die Klangfarben des Orechesters durch. Für einen Dokumentarfilm geschrieben, ist die Musik ebenso sinnlich wie unterhaltsam - auch für Erwachsene.

For a special one-hour program beginning at 4:30pm, Larry showcases the talents of gay composers Gian Carlo Menotti, Reynaldo Hahn, and Michael Tippett. Also featured are Peter Pears, Nathan Lane, Josephine Baker, Donald Gramm, and pianists, Earl Wild, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, and more. The post A Program for Gay Pride Weekend appeared first on WFMT.

Den sovjetiske cellist Mstislav Rostropovitj (1927-2007) dannede under den kolde krig et varmt venskab med den engelske komponist Benjamin Britten (1913-1976).De gav deres første fælles koncert i 1961 ved Brittens musikfestival i England, hvor Rostropovitj bl.a. uropførte Brittens Cellosonate, skrevet specielt til ham.Efter mere end et halvt århundrede er hele denne historiske koncert nu blevet offentliggjort.Schubert: Arpeggione Sonate.Britten: Cellosonate.Schumann: Fem stykker i folketone.Debussy: Cellosonate.Bach: Woferne du den edlen Frieden.Mstislav Rostropovitj, cello.Benjamin Britten, klaver.Peter Pears, tenor.(Koncert ved Aldeburgh Festivalen, 7. juli 1961). Vært: Esben Tange. www.dr.dk/p2koncerten (Sendt første gang 4. februar).

I programmet diskuteras bl.a. musik av John Pickard, blockflöjter med Venedig-anknytning, pianomusik av Tjajkovskij samt Elgars oratorium Gerontius dröm med Barenboim på pulten. Måns väljer Cluytens. Söndag den 24 sept 12.00 14.00 I panelen David Björkman, Evabritt Selén och Tony Lundman som tillsammans med programledaren Johan Korssell betygsätter följande skivor: PETER TJAJKOVSKIJ Pianosonat nr 2 G-dur, Årstiderna Nikolai Lugansky, piano Naïve AM 215  RECORDARE VENEZIA Musik av bl.a. Vivaldi, Marini och Galuppi Barokkanerne Ingeborg Christophersen, flöjt LAWO LWC 1114 JOHN PICKARD Symfoni nr 5, Sixteen Sunrises, Concertante Variations, Toccata BBCs walesiska symfoniorkester Martyn Brabbins, dirigent Bis BIS 2261  EDWARD ELGAR Gerontius dröm Catherine Wyn-Rogers, Andrew Staples, Thomas Hampson Staatsopernchor, Berlin, RIAS Kammerchor, Staatskapelle, Berlin Daniel Barenboim, dirigent Decca 483 1585 Referensen - Elgar: Johan jämför med och refererar till en inspelning där Benjamin Britten dirigerar Londons symfoniorkester. Solister: Yvonne Minton, Peter Pears och John Shirley Quirk tillsammans med Kings College Choir och Londons symfoniska kör. Skivmärke Decca. Måns val Måns Tengnér väljer och spelar valda delar ur en box som innehåller 65 CD, The Complete Orchestral Recordings, med dirigenten André Cluytens alla inspelningar utom opera. Utgiven på Erato.  Andra i programmet nämnda eller rekommenderade inspelningar: Vivaldis Il gardellino med Matheus-ensemblen ledd av Jean-Christophe Spinosi samt med flöjtisten Maurice Steger tillsammans med Il Barocchisti på Claves. Tjajkovskijs Årstiderna med Michail Pletnjov på Virgin Classics. Elgars Gerontius dröm med Sarah Connolly m.fl och BBCs kör- och symfoniorkester ledda av Andrew Davis på Chandos; Janet Baker m.fl. tillsammans med bl.a. Hallé-orkestern och kör allt under John Barbirolli på EMI; med bl.a. Gladys Ripley, Huddersfield Choral Society  och Liverpools filharmoniker allt under Malcolm Sargent på Testament; Helen Watts m.fl. samt Londons filharmoniska kör och New Philharmonia orchestra dirigerade av Adrian Boult på EMI; Jane Irwin m.fl, Birminghams symfoniska kör- och symfoniorkester ledda av Sakari Oramo på CBSO samt med bl.a. Yvonne Minton, Londons symfoniska kör- och symfoniorkester allt under Benjamin Britten på London (Referensen). Inget Svep denna vecka

Compositions by the Australian-American, Percy Grainger. Works include: Country Gardens, Molly On the Shore, Mock Morris, Irish Tune From County Derry and Handel in the Strand. Perfomers include: Percy Grainger, Eugene Ormandy,  Boyd Neel, Peter Pears, Leopold Stokowski and the  Virtuoso String Quartet.

Britain's Aldeburgh music festival was founded after the second world war by the composer Benjamin Britten and the singer Peter Pears. Britten used to take “composing walks”, drawing inspiration from the birdsong he heard in the surrounding countryside and this year, birdsong forms the centrepiece of the festival, as artistic director Pierre-Laurent Aimard, and chief executive Roger Wright, told FT critic Hannah Nepil Music: Biber, Sonata Representativa: II. Nightingale, Romanesca; Williams, The Lark Ascending, Hugh Bean; Messiaen, Catalogue d'oiseaux / Book 3 - 6. L'Alouette Lulu, Pierre-Laurent-Aimard See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Följ med till Brittenland, Aldeburgh i Suffolk, orten invid den stormande Nordsjön som Britten älskade och som betydde så mycket för hans verk.  I Johan Korssells dokumentär möter vi en rad röster om Britten, däribland sångare som Dame Janet Baker och Ian Bostridge, tonsättaren Colin Matthews, Brittens brorson Alan och många fler. ”När man hör Benjamin Brittens musik – om man verkligen lyssnar på den så blir man medveten om något väldigt mörkt, det är som kugghjul som nöter mot varandra utan att riktigt gripa tag i varandra och det skapar stor smärta” så uttryckte sig Leonard Bernstein (som gav den amerikanska premiären av Peter Grimes) om Brittens musik. Och Britten var ett komplicerat geni, långt ifrån självskriven i rollen som brittisk nationaltonsättare, ändå var det faktiskt som en sådan som han framstod när han gick bort vid 63 års ålder. Men på det sätt som hans talanger samverkade var han, trots allt, den totale musikern, lika begåvad som pianist och dirigent som tonsättare. Idag är Britten den tredje mest spelade av 1900-talets operakonstnärerer, efter Puccini och Richard Strauss. Han ligger på första plats om man räknar med operor skrivna av kompositörer födda under 1900-talet. Många av de mest framträdande rollerna i operorna och därtill en rad fenomenala sång-cykler skrev Britten direkt för sin livspartner, tenoren Peter Pears. Brittens kärleksbrev till Pears är för övrigt bland de vackraste som skrivits, vilket också får sägas om verk som Les illuminations, Serenaden och Nocturnen. I första delen möter vi världens idag ledande Britten-röst, Ian Bostridge som håller Britten för att vara 1900-talets främste vokale tonsättaren inom den klassiska musiken.    Psst, det var Brittens stolta mor som förutspådde honom att bli det fjärde B:et i tonsättarkanon efter giganterna Bach, Beethoven och Brahms. Han var dessutom det fjärde barnet i en syskonskara efter, Barbara, Bobby och Beth. (Repris från nov-13) En P2 Dokumentär i två delar av Johan Korssell.

Author Pat Barker chooses Benjamin Britten's song cycle Who Are These Children? Plus archive interviews with Britten and Gladys Parr, a masterclass in performing the piece by Peter Pears - and a recent Front Row discussion with the singer Ian Bostridge and the Guardian columnist Martin Kettle on dealing with the composer’s dramatisation of and fascination with children in a culture of heightened sensitivities about the young. Go to Front Row’s Cultural Exchange website for full details.

The New Elizabethans: Benjamin Britten. One of the greatest composers of the 20th century. A conductor and musician of gifted brilliance, Britten was writing symphonies from the age of twelve and learning from the composer Frank Bridge in his early teens. A pacifist during WWII he travelled through America with the singer Peter Pears (who would later become his life-long companion) and befriended writers like W.H.Auden and Christopher Isherwood. He is famous for operas like Peter Grimes, choral works such as The War Requiem which he wrote for the reconsecration of Coventry Cathedral and enjoyed composing for children: The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra is one of his best known pieces. He founded the Aldeburgh Festival on the Suffolk coast, which continues to this day, and the Britten-Pears Foundation still promotes his work with Peter Pears. He refused a knighthood but was a member of the Order of Merit and accepted a life peerage in 1976. The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings. Producer: Clare Walker.

Donald Macleod explores Benjamin Britten's music in the light of two enduring influences - his life partner, the tenor Peter Pears and his beloved native county of Suffolk

In 1936, Britten and Auden established a friendship and creative partnership whilst working at the GPO film unit in Blackheath, London, producing iconic films such as "Night Mail." With war looming, Auden - a pacifist - left for America to be shortly followed by Britten and Peter Pears in 1939. 7 Middagh Street in Brooklyn Heights was to become their home and an extraordinary melting part of creativity. Gypsy Rose Lee, Carson McCullers, George Davis, Chester Kallman were fellow lodgers and regular visitors included Thomas Mann, Aaron Copland, Lotte Lenya, Kurt Weill, Virgil Thomson, Marc Blitzstein and Leonard Bernstein. When Salvador Dali met Auden at one of the infamous house parties he famously asked him "Do you speak English?"

Sir Peter Pears has been acknowledged for many years as an outstanding interpreter of the vocal music of Benjamin Britten. He also helped Britten to found the Aldeburgh Festival and he still takes an active part in the running of it.In conversation with Roy Plomley, Sir Peter talks about his long career and chooses the eight records he would take to the mythical island.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: The Sprig Of Thyme by Benjamin Britten Book: A book by E.M Forster Luxury: Painting from his collection

Sir Peter Pears has been acknowledged for many years as an outstanding interpreter of the vocal music of Benjamin Britten. He also helped Britten to found the Aldeburgh Festival and he still takes an active part in the running of it. In conversation with Roy Plomley, Sir Peter talks about his long career and chooses the eight records he would take to the mythical island. [Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: The Sprig Of Thyme by Benjamin Britten Book: A book by E.M Forster Luxury: Painting from his collection

Roy Plomley's castaway is tenor Peter Pears. Favourite track: Moonlight (from Peter Grimes) by Benjamin Britten Book: Tropical Plants and Their Cultivation by Louis Bruggeman Luxury: Bed