Customer Reviews (3)

Good Narrative; Weaker Analysis
This is a good but not outstanding biography of the great Benjamin Britten.Carpenter was well equipped to tackle Britten's life.An experienced biographer, some of his prior work, like his very good biography of Auden, covers the same period and some of the same aspects of British artistic life as this book.Carpenter had the cooperation of the Britten estate and a wide variety of Britten's friends and associates.It is based on a wide variety of documentary material and interviews.This book is thorough, well written, and organized well.As a narrative of Britten's personal and professional lives, it is very strong and unlikely to be surpassed.The book shows very well Britten's remarkable creativity.A disciplined worker, Britten produced a large volume of outstanding music while also performing and working as a major force in the development of British musical life.Carpenter also shows, though implicitly, that Britten was a charismatic figure.He had a remarkable ability to attract the services of other talented individuals, allowing him to realize very ambitious projects such as his operas and the development of the Aldeburgh festival. Carpenter is fair in this treatment of Britten, showing both the attractive and unfortunate aspects of his personality, such as his tendency to callously discard co-workers when he felt he could work more productively with others.
Carpenter is less good in dealing with Britten's music.This is true both for Britten's output in general and specific works.Nowhere in this book do we get any sense of why Britten chose to focus on vocal music.Britten did produce important orchestral and chamber work, but his most important output was opera, less conventional music theater like his church parables, choral music, and songs.Britten's ability to set text to music was truly remarkable.Did Britten see this as his great strength as a composer or were there other reasons for the focus of his career?Carpenter tends also to interpret individual works, particularly the operas, in light of very specific aspects of Britten's life, especially his sexuality.In many cases, such as the operas Peter Grimes and Death in Venice, this makes good sense.With these interpretations, Carpenter seems also to be following the lead of some other scholars who have studied Britten.This approach, however, seems not so much wrong as excessively reductive.For example, Carpenter's discussion of Britten's underappreciated opera Gloriana, composed for the coronation of Elizabeth II, focuses on the character of the Earl of Essex, who Carpenter sees as embodying some of Britten's preoccupations about his life as public artist.The main figure of the opera, however, is Elizabeth I, and an important theme of the work is the collision of private needs and public responsibilities in the exercise of power.Surely, this was not lost on the premiere audience, which included the young Elizabeth II, who later became something of a patron of Britten.Carpenter gives no real sense of the position that Britten occupies in the history of 20th century music, probably because he doesn't have the musicological knowledge necessary to establish this kind of context.Less understandably, Carpenter misses an opportunity to discuss Britten's important role in the professionalization and expansion of post-war British musical and artistic life.Carpenter's own narrative shows the somewhat amateurish quality of pre-war British musical life and its remarkable evolution in the post-war period, a process in which Britten was a important creative figure.
This book is a useful source for those interested in Britten specifically, 20th century music, opera, and the history of British intellectual life.There is still an opportunity to write a first rate biography of Britten.

A must read....with caution
Carpenter has given us a top rate book of Britten the man.He unfortunately sheds no light on Britten's actual music.By all means, read the book, but ignore his ... "analyses," and take his attempts psychology with a grain of salt.

Britten bio almost great.
Carpenter, through numerous quotes from colleagues, friends and written correspondence from the composer himself provides a rare and intimate view into Britten's creative mind and personality.The only tedious aspect of this in-depth biography is in Carpenter's descriptions of Britten's pieces.Carpenter tries to speculate about how much of Britten's real life went into his music.The result comes off as searching for Britten's homosexuality and lost innocense in tones.It is however an absorbing and educating read ... Read more

Product Description
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Book Description
This is a comprehensive guide to Britten's work, aimed both at the nonspecialist and the music student. It sheds light on both the composer's stylistic and personal development, offering new interpretations of his operatic works and discussing his characteristic working methods. A distinguished team of contributors include some who worked with the composer during his lifetime, as well as leading representatives of the younger generation of Britten scholars on both sides of the Atlantic. ... Read more

Amazon.com
He wrote the first successful English opera since Purcell, along with a collection of songs, choral compositions, and ballets that have assured him an important place in 20th-century music. Michael Oliver, in one of Phaidon's series, 20th-Century Composers, offers a compact, useful introduction to British composer Benjamin Britten and his work, from folksong settings to church music and the great opera Peter Grimes. Frank about Britten's homosexuality and his long-time relationship with the tenor Peter Pears, the book is never prurient and seldom gossipy. Like all the Phaidon books, this one is relatively brief, well written, well illustrated, and not too technical.Product Description
Benjamin Britten (1913-76) changed the course of English music with highly original works such as his opera Peter Grimes. While his music is performed more widely than those of any other English composer, his international success did not prevent him from continuing to draw inspiration from his native land. In this engaging biography, the author creates a portrait of a great artist, exploring his wide-ranging compositions in detail and discussing the many contradictions that pervaded Britten's fascinating life and career.


Benjamin Britten is part of Phaidon's successful 20th Century Composers series, which presents authoritative and engaging biographies of the great creative musicians of our time, augmented by striking visual material and essential reference information. This edition of the book features a whimsical new cover by Jean-Jacques Sempé, the world-renowned illustrator and cartoonist. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Phaidon's, "Benjamin Britten"very informative, enjoyable
Michael Oliver's "Benjamin Britten" is both informative and insightful.As one in a series of 20th Century Composers, I found this edition most interesting.I have read six other editions from the series, and Michael Oliver's is the best written thus far.

There are several well written biographies of Britten on the market.All that I have read thus far spend entirely too much time discussing the personal life of the composer, rather than focusing on his ground- breaking operas, or orchestral works.Oliver chooses to focus more on the music that isBritten, rather than getting wrapped up in his personal life.True, elements of Britten's childhood and adult struggles with the morality of the day may have caused him to compose the haunting tunes and melodies, but they are not the basis for understanding his music.

Oliver highlights the reason Britten is one of the 20th century's greatest composers- pure genious. ... Read more

Book Description
The book examines from various viewpoints Britten's War Requiem, written in 1962 to celebrate the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral and uniting the famous anti-war poetry of Wilfred Owen with the Latin Requiem Mass. Britten's and Owen's pacifist beliefs are compared, and the chronology of the compositional process unraveled from documentary and manuscript sources. The musical language is analyzed in detail, and the fluctuating critical responses to the score are assessed. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Another excellent addition to the Cambridge Series
I have read several of the books in the Cambridge Music Handbooks Series. The purpose of the books in this series is to aid the listener in understanding the theoretical/analytical aspects of the music (such asform, recurring thematic material, growth process, etc.) as well as thehistorical background of the piece, including critical reaction to thepremiere of the work.

The book is divided logically into four chapters.The first chapter deals with Britten's pacifist beliefs and how they led tohis encounter with the poetry of Wilfred Owen, a soldier who had beenkilled in World War I. Owen turned out a small body of poetry during thelast two years of the war, nine of which Britten chose to use in hisRequiem, along with the text for the Latin Mass of the Dead.

The secondchapter gives the historical background of the piece: commission,composition, and the premiere performance.

The third chapter is subtitled"The musical language: idiom and structure." This chapter detailsthe musical content of the piece and how it conforms or deviates from thetraditional Requiem formula set up by Mozart and Verdi. This chapter is the"meat" of the book as far as this critic is concerned. Inunderstanding the musical content, one is better equipped to listen with anear of understanding instead of ignorance.

The final chapter reveals thecritical reception of the piece, which was extremely positive. Most criticsimmediately hailed this work as Britten's masterpiece. As the authorstates, "it is difficult to call to mind any other majortwentieth-century work which met with such instantaneous and unanimouslyhigh praise from almost all sectors of the media."

In conclusion, Ican highly recommend this book without hesitation if you are at allinterested in the music of the twentieth century. Britten was clearly abrilliant composer; the War Requiem is, arguably, his masterpiece; and thisbook is a fine tribute to a wonderful piece of music. ... Read more

Book Description
This landmark publication includes 61 songs, combining the contents of the seven published books of Britten folksong arrangements in High and Low Voice editions. Some of the songs have never before been transposed. The songs of Volume 6, for voice and guitar, have been transcribed for voice and piano for this edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Simply Good Music
These songs are excellent for singers of any stage of study. Being folksong arrangements, the melodies are simple, but not easy. BEAUTIFUL MUSIC. The previous reviewer was obviously not paying attention to what matters in the music.

What were they thinking!!??
Why in god's name would you transcribe the guitar folk songs for piano? Can't pianists read treble clef? Will guitarists be able to figure out the proper fingerings? Does some fool at Boosey and Hawkes fear the guitar parts would leak over and contaminate the piano parts?

Yet another example of the absolutely stupid prejudice against the guitar, perpetrated on the music of a composer who liked the guitar. ... Read more

Book Description
The second title in the Amadeus Press Parallel Lives series, this volume examines the lives and work of two giants of 20th century music. Both composers influenced countless others, and their works are performed often in today's concert and opera houses. Felsenfeld gives us a penetrating look into the lives of these two extraordinary men, helping us get to know them and therefore better understand their music. In clear, concise language he examines their major works, helping us to understand their genius and power, which is illustrated by the accompanying full-length CD.The author points out parallel developments in Britten and Barber's lives and careers. Both came of age in a time of war, a time of political and artistic unrest and upheaval, and both were celebrities in their own time. Both wrote primarily - and most successfully - for the voice, but neither became ghettoized as a strictly vocal composer, and both were possessed of a flawless compositional technique, with a fluency that bordered on wizardry. Finally, both were prolific, involved musical presences on the world stage.The accompanying full-length CD from Naxos Records includes six complete pieces. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

AVOID THIS BOOK!
Anyone interested in Barber's life and/or music should seek out the amazing bio by Barbara Heyman, Samuel Barber - The Composer and his Music (Oxford U. Press). As a lifelong student of the career & music of Barber, I was appalled to read this book by Felsenfeld. It is FILLED with inaccuracies, half-truths, ambiguities, and similarly misleading statements. And was there ANY attempt at editing the ms? It is likewise filled with errors in usage, punctuation, even vocabulary. The Britten section is equally poor. The recorded music on the attached cd does not fairly represent the composers, either - it's all from the "middle period" of each man and does not properly represent either composer's stylistic breadth. The concept of a brief book introducing these composers to the lay listener, with listening excerpts provided in the package, is a fine one, which makes it doubly sad that a golden opportunity has been botched. If I could give this item "zero stars" or maybe a minus number, I would. AVOID THIS ONE!

A welcome addition to Barber research!!
I was so pleased to find that this book had just come out!I'm researching Barber for a Masters Thesis project and enjoyed the information presented-some that has not been discussed in the handful of books about him.Very interesting to see the similarities between him and Britten.The CD that comes with it is also nice.Well-written and a good read!

But what is on the CD you ask...
Since nearly half of the book is dedicated to the discussion and dissection of Benjamin Britton's and Samuel Barber's compositions, here listed is the music on the accompanying Naxos CD: 1) Britten: Passacaglia (from Peter Grimes); 2) Britten: Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings (complete); 3) Britten: The Turn of the Screw (Act II: Variation XV, scene 8); 4) Barber: Adagio for Strings; 5) Barber: Knoxville, Summer of 1915; and 6) Barber: Second Essay for Orchestra. I will offer a review of the book itself after I read it as it just arrived in my mailbox today (July 26, 2005). ... Read more

Product Description
Claire Seymour examines ways in which Britten's operas explored and articulated the inherent ambiguity and latent sexuality of music, particularly song, and suggests that they may illustrate his search for a public 'voice' which would embody, communicate, and perhaps resolve his private beliefs and anxieties. She demonstrates how the delicate balance between private and public communication, and the tension between art as self-expression and art as moral resolution were key concerns in Britten's music.
Analyses of Britten's operas from Paul Bunyan to Death in Venice, the three Church Parables, and several of the 'children's operas' offer evidence that, for Britten, opera was the natural medium through which to explore, express and, paradoxically, repress his private concerns. ... Read more

Book Description
These remarkable letters, never before published, constitute a comprehensive biography told largely in Britten's own words. Volume 1 accompanies him through prep and English public school and then to London to the Royal College of Music, where the young composer is plunged into metropolitan life and makes influential new friends, among them Auden and Isherwood. This was a time of prodigious musical creativity, a growing awareness of his homosexuality, and the dawning of his political convictions. It was during this time that Britten met Peter Pears, the partner with whom his musical and personal relationship was to last a lifetime. This volume closes in May, 1939, when Britten and Pears depart for the United States.
Volume 2 offers an overview of a crucial period in American and British history, politics, and culture. Britten's experience of exile, his return with Pears to England to face recriminations as a Conscientious Objector and prejudice as a brilliant gay artist, and the triumph of his first major opera, Peter Grimes, are all outlined in letters which are a fascinating mix of the public and private.
These first two volumes of the Selected Letters and Diaries--a further two are in preparation--make a fundamental contribution to Britten studies and to twentieth-century cultural history. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

All you ever wanted to know.
This is a must for any serious Britten scholar.Hundreds of letters and diary entries are included which tell the story of the composers life.To get a complete view, letters and diary entries of people surrounding Briten are also included.The overwhelming amount of footnoted material also includes a wealth of information. ... Read more

Book Description
Contents: The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra * Matinees Musicales * Soirees Musicales * The Courtly Dances from Gloriana. ... Read more

Book Description
Most of the distinctive Purcell realizations by Benjamin Britten, vocal parts edited by Peter Pears, have been out of print for some years. This new edition collects 49 selections for high voice and 45 selections for medium/low voice. Includes 9 songs from Harmonia Sacra, 24 solo songs and six duets from Orpheus Britannicus, "The Queen's Epicedium," and selections from Dido and Aeneas and The Fairy Queen. ... Read more

Book Description
Most of the distinctive Purcell realizations by Benjamin Britten, vocal parts edited by Peter Pears, have been out of print for sone years. This new edition collects 49 selections for high voice and 45 selections for medium/low voice. Includes 9 songs from Harmonia Sacra, 24 solo songs and six duets from Orpheus Britannicus, "The Queen's Epicedium," and selections from Dido and Aeneas and The Fairy Queen. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (4)

Not A Help For Teachers
I purchased this with the thought that it would add another dimension to my lesson plans introducing classical music and orchestration to young children in primary grades.It did not meet my objective.The narration is a bit high-brow and dull for kids.I hoped that the CD would have tracks to go with each section of the book but that was not the case.I have been able to pull some tidbits of information from the book to include in lesson plans but overall it hasn't been useful.I would highly recommend "The Story of the Orchestra" by Robert Levine.

I do give the book 3 stars for those who may have a young music student (maybe between 8-10 yrs. old) who is self motivated and might enjoy this book as an individual endeavor.

Great for Kids
I know this product is meant for older children, but my four-year-old loves this book and especially the recording. He can't get enough of the description of the elements of the orchestra and the fugues by Benjamin Britten. He asks to play this over and over in the car. I recommend introducing this to young children - they just might like it, and possibly learn something in the process.

Tremendously helpful as teaching tool, besides being fun!
This piece of music by Britten has always been, for me at least,the finest teaching tool in the world of classical music. Even for teaching oneself about the instruments of the orchestra (and especially using the CD alongside) it is just unbeatable. A superb and very easy piece of music to listen to, it is also ingenious, easy to follow and quite memorable to boot. The main theme is great and all the little solos show off the seperate instruments beautifully. You simply cannot get better than this anywhere.

High Quality, Educational and Fun Entertainment
Money well spent! Good quality music on the enclosed CD, nice explanations and illustrations in the book. This book will introduce you / your children to the instruments and history of orchestra music in an entertaining fashion.
The book was recommended in Susan Bauer's Well-Trained Mind (Classical Homeschool Education). A nice read-and-listen activity for the whole family even if you are not into homeschooling. Try it on a car trip ... ... Read more