# Benjamin Britten - Where to start?



## ClassicalStudent (Jul 16, 2018)

Hi.

I want to buy some Benjamin Britten but I have no idea where to start for a newbie.

What should I buy first?

Thanks.


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## Barbebleu (May 17, 2015)

Have a look at the thread called Britten's Music.


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## techniquest (Aug 3, 2012)

Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra
Four Sea Interludes
Simple Symphony.

The above are good starting points, but if you like these you'll be hungry for more in which case go to these two operas:
Peter Grimes
Turn of the Screw

Then prepare yourself for the 'War Requiem' and the 'Spring Symphony', or - for something a little lighter - 'Noyes Fludde'.


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## Chromatose (Jan 18, 2016)

https://www.talkclassical.com/56151...w.talkclassical.com/56151-brittens-music.html


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## Guest (Jul 16, 2018)

Despite being less of an obvious first choice, the opera _Albert Herring_ is full of really good music, a funny and easy to watch plot and an absolutely brilliant libretto. I think it has a much better overview of Britten's style as the music covers a lot of emotional ground.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

I would jump in. The Serenade and Les Illuminations for song cycles with orchestra. An opera? The suggestion above (Albert Herring) is a good one. So is Midsummer Night's Dream. Or, if you generally like big choral masterpieces, try the War Requiem (there is a lot of typical Britten - his many styles - in it). If you like chamber music, the quartets. I would leave the pure orchestral for a bit but the early violin concerto is something not so many miles away from the 1st Shostakovich concerto.


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## KRoad (Jun 1, 2012)

Billy Budd - an excellent introduction...


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## kyjo (Jan 1, 2018)

My favorite Britten works - and probably among his most easily accessible ones - are the Frank Bridge Variations, Young Person’s Guide, Violin Concerto, and Sinfonia da Requiem. Les Illuminations and the Serenade for tenor, horn, and strings contain some wonderful music as well. I’m currently learning his Cello Suite no. 1 - not exactly easy listening, but an ingenious and intriguing work all the same.


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## BiscuityBoyle (Feb 5, 2018)

For me, the Cello Symphony might be his finest hour. It's harsh, tense and utterly wonderful.






See also the unfinished piano variations, a haunting little piece.


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