Notes and Editorial Reviews
This 27-CD set brings together for the first time Britten's complete Decca recordings as pianist and conductor in which he performs music by other composers - an astonishing variety of music that ranges from large-scale choral works by Bach and Purcell to Schumann and Elgar, as well as orchestral works by Mozart, Haydn and Schubert. Solo vocal repertory is generously represented with important works by Schubert and Schumann and early twentieth-century English song. Chamber music features Britten the pianist in partnership with two of Britten's closest collaborators: Mstislav Rostropovich and Sviatoslav Richter.
During the research and preparation for this set a major discovery was made. The existence of a few unpublished
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Schubert songs was already known and a few works which had never appeared on CD already ensured their inclusion at the planning stage. However the discovery of an unpublished tape containing almost 50 minutes of Mozart (including Symphony No.40) with the London Symphony Orchestra recorded in Kingsway Hall in December 1963 was a genuine once in a lifetime discovery.
R E V I E W:
It says something about Britten’s ability as a performer of other composers’ music that most of these performances have been highly regarded and have remained in print since they were first issued. Many, especially the song recitals with Peter Pears (including Schubert’s Winterreise and Die schöne Müllerin), the Mozart 20th and 27th Piano Concertos with Clifford Curzon, the two piano and four-hand pieces by Mozart, Schubert, and Debussy with Sviatoslav Richter, various cello works with Rostropovich, and Schumann’s Scenes from Goethe’s Faust, still stand as reference recordings, or at the very least classic performances.
As a result, there is little here that will be unfamiliar to most serious collectors among these twenty-seven discs. Decca has included two bonus discs, featuring a song recital boasting some numbers by the legendary (in both senses of the term) Kathleen Ferrier, and a program consisting of Handel’s Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day (with QEII in the audience), plus a wonderful series of Mozart pieces: the Overture to Così fan tutte, the Masonic Funeral Music, a couple of arias sung by Pears, and an additional recording of the 40th Symphony.
Britten was a splendid conductor of music of the Baroque and Classical period. His St. John Passion (in English), Brandenburg Concertos, The Fairy Queen, and Haydn and Mozart Symphonies may not follow later period orthodoxy, but they have a musicality and freshness that makes such considerations irrelevant. His official recording of Mozart’s great G minor Symphony is one of the few modern recordings that gets away with taking all the repeats in the slow movement. The second performance omits it, but it remains a gripping interpretation nonetheless.
Comparison of the two first movements reveals how Britten characterizes the music differently, but equally powerfully, in both versions: the first swifter with larger contrasts between loud and soft, the second a touch slower but more rhythmically trenchant. Both are excellent. Other highlights include a remarkably unsticky performance of Elgar’s potentially annoying The Dream of Gerontious, and an unforgettable collection of Grainger folk song arrangements.
As collectors of the BBC’s “Britten the Performer” series will know, the works here represent only a fraction of Britten’s active concert repertoire. Perhaps that collection will be boxed up and released at some point as well. Until then, this remains an astonishing tribute to one of the 20th century’s musical geniuses, a true all-around musician in every respect.
-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com
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Works on This Recording
1.
Saint John Passion, BWV 245 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer:
Adrian Thompson (Tenor),
John Tobin (Tenor),
Jenny Hill (Soprano),
Robert Tear (Tenor),
Alfreda Hodgson (Alto),
Gwynne Howell (Bass),
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone),
Russell Burgess (Tenor),
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Heather Harper (Soprano)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Wandsworth School Boys' Choir
Period: Baroque
Written: 1724; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 04/1971
Venue: The Maltings, Snape, England
Length: 130 Minutes 28 Secs.
Language: English
2.
Süsser Trost, mein Jesus kömmt, BWV 151 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer:
Helen Watts (Alto),
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Wandsworth School Choir
Written: 1725
3.
Herr, deine Augen sehen nach dem Glauben, BWV 102 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer:
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Baritone),
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Dame Janet Baker (Mezzo Soprano)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Aldeburgh Festival Chorus
Period: Baroque
Written: 1726; Leipzig, Germany
4.
Celebrate this festival, Z 321 by Henry Purcell
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Heather Harper (Soprano),
Josephine Veasey (Mezzo Soprano),
James Bowman (Countertenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Ambrosian Singers
Period: Baroque
Written: 1693; England
5.
Fairy Queen, Z 629 by Henry Purcell
Performer:
Norma Burrowes (Soprano),
Mary Wells (Soprano),
Ian Partridge (Tenor),
Charles Brett (Counter Tenor),
James Bowman (Counter Tenor),
Alfreda Hodgson (Mezzo Soprano),
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone),
Owen Brannigan (Bass),
Jennifer Vyvyan (Soprano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Ambrosian Opera Chorus
Period: Baroque
Written: 1692; England
12.
Concerto for Piano no 12 in A major, K 414 (385p) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1782; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1956
Venue: Jubilee Hall, Aldeburgh
15.
Concerto for Cello no 1 in C major, H 7b no 1 by Franz Joseph Haydn
Performer:
Mstislav Rostropovich (Cello)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: circa 1761-1765; Eszterhazá, Hungary
16.
Concerto for Piano no 20 in D minor, K 466 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Performer:
Clifford Curzon (Piano)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1785; Vienna, Austria
18.
Symphony no 41 in C major, K 551 "Jupiter" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1788; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1966
19.
Symphony no 39 in E flat major, K 543 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1788; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1962
20.
Si mostra la sorte, K 209 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1775; Salzburg, Austria
Date of Recording: 1962
21.
Per pietà, non ricercate, K 420 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1783; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 1962
25.
Symphony no 40 in G minor, K 550 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1788; Vienna, Austria
27.
Così fan tutte, K 588: Overture by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
London Symphony Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1790; Vienna, Austria
28.
Symphony no 40 in G minor, K 550 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
London Symphony Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1788; Vienna, Austria
29.
Si mostra la sorte, K 209 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
London Symphony Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1775; Salzburg, Austria
30.
Per pietà, non ricercate, K 420 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
London Symphony Orchestra
Period: Classical
Written: 1783; Vienna, Austria
33.
Scenes from Goethe's Faust by Robert Schumann
Performer:
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Baritone),
Elizabeth Harwood (Soprano),
Peter Pears (Tenor),
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Romantic
Written: 1844-1853; Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1972
Venue: The Maltings, Snape, Aldeburgh, England
Length: 117 Minutes 55 Secs.
Language: German
34.
Chacony for Strings in G minor, Z 730 by Henry Purcell
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: Baroque
Written: England
Date of Recording: 1969
36.
Aquarelles (2) by Frederick Delius
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1932; France
Date of Recording: 1969
37.
Sir Roger de Coverley, H 155 by Frank Bridge
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1922; England
Date of Recording: 1969
38.
The Dream of Gerontius, Op. 38 by Sir Edward Elgar
Performer:
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone),
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Yvonne Minton (Mezzo Soprano)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
London Symphony Orchestra,
London Symphony Chorus
Period: Romantic
Written: 1899-1900; England
Language: English
39.
Shepherd's Hey by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: England
40.
My Robin is to the greenwood gone by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1912; England
41.
Lisbon by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1906; England
42.
Willow, Willow by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1898-1911; England
Language: English
43.
Duke of Marlborough Fanfare by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Language: English
44.
I'm Seventeen Come Sunday by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Ambrosian Singers
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1905-1912
Language: English
45.
Scotch Strathspey and Reel by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Ambrosian Singers
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1901-1911; England
Language: English
46.
The Lost Lady Found by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Ambrosian Singers
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1905-1910; England
Language: English
47.
Bold William Taylor by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1908; England
Language: English
48.
Shallow Brown by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
John Shirley-Quirk (Baritone)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1910; England
Language: English
50.
Lord Maxwell's Goodnight by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1904-1912
Language: English
52.
Pretty Maid Milkin' her Cow by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Language: English
53.
Sprig of thyme by Percy Aldridge Grainger
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1907/1920; England
Language: English
60.
En blanc et noir by Claude Debussy
Performer:
Sviatoslav Richter (Piano),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1915; France
Date of Recording: 1967
61.
Sonata for Cello and Piano by Claude Debussy
Performer:
Mstislav Rostropovich (Cello),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1915; France
64.
Ganymed, D 544/Op. 19 no 3 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Kathleen Ferrier (Alto),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1817; Vienna, Austria
Venue: BBC Radio
Language: German
65.
Du liebst mich nicht, D 756 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Kathleen Ferrier (Alto),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1822; Vienna, Austria
Venue: BBC Radio
Language: German
66.
Lachen und Weinen, D 777/Op. 59 no 4 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Kathleen Ferrier (Alto),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: ?1823; Vienna, Austria
Venue: BBC Radio
Language: German
67.
Winterreise, D 911/Op. 89 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1827; Vienna, Austria
Date of Recording: 10/1963
Venue: Kingsway Hall, London, England
Length: 73 Minutes 7 Secs.
Language: German
69.
Der Einsame, D 800 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1825; Vienna, Austria
72.
Nachtstück, D 672 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: circa 1819; Vienna, Austria
73.
Nacht und Träume, D 827 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1823; Vienna, Austria
76.
Der Geistertanz, D 116 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1814; Vienna, Austria
77.
Der Einsame, D 800 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1825; Vienna, Austria
78.
Auflösung, D 807 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1824; Vienna, Austria
80.
Atys, D 585 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1817; Vienna, Austria
81.
An die Entfernte, D 765 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1822; Vienna, Austria
82.
Abendstern, D 806 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1824; Vienna, Austria
83.
Dichterliebe, Op. 48 by Robert Schumann
Performer:
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Benjamin Britten (Piano)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1840; Germany
86.
Fairy tale by Leos Janácek
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Mstislav Rostropovich (Cello)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1910-23; Brno, Czech Republic
88.
When you are old, H 142 by Frank Bridge
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1919; England
89.
Tis but a week, H 146 by Frank Bridge
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1919; England
90.
So perverse, H 61 by Frank Bridge
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1905; England
91.
Love went a-riding, H 114 by Frank Bridge
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1914; England
92.
Journey's End, H 167 by Frank Bridge
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1925; England
93.
Golden Hair, H 165 by Frank Bridge
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1925; England
94.
Go not, happy day, H 34 by Frank Bridge
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1916; England
95.
Songs (12), Op. 48/H 174 by Gustav Holst
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1929; England
96.
How love came in (Moderato) by Lennox Berkeley
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1933; Great Britain
102.
Yarmouth Fair by Peter Warlock
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1924; England
103.
Songs for Ariel by Michael Tippett
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1962; England
104.
Songs (3): The one hope by John Ireland
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1926; England
106.
Songs (2): The Trellis by John Ireland
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: England
107.
Land of Lost Content by John Ireland
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1920-1921; England
113.
Gesänge des Harfners no 2, D 480 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1816/1822; Vienna, Austria
114.
Gesänge des Harfners no 1, D 478 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1816/1822; Vienna, Austria
115.
Geheimes, D 719/Op. 14 no 2 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1821; Vienna, Austria
116.
Ganymed, D 544/Op. 19 no 3 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1817; Vienna, Austria
118.
Der zürnenden Diana, D 707 by Franz Schubert
Performer:
Benjamin Britten (Piano),
Peter Pears (Tenor)
Period: Romantic
Written: 1820; Vienna, Austria
121.
Sellinger's Round, MB 84 by William Byrd
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra
Period: Renaissance
Written: England
122.
Ode for St Cecilia's Day, HWV 76 by George Frideric Handel
Performer:
Richard Adeney (Flute),
Philip Jones (Trumpet),
Peter Pears (Tenor),
Heather Harper (Soprano),
Julian Bream (Lute),
Keith Harvey (Cello),
Sir Philip Ledger (Organ),
Sir Philip Ledger (Harpsichord)
Conductor:
Benjamin Britten
Orchestra/Ensemble:
English Chamber Orchestra,
Chorus of East Anglian Choirs
Period: Baroque
Written: 1739; London, England
Date of Recording: 06/04/1967
Venue: Live Snape Maltings, Aldeburgh, England
Length: 54 Minutes 1 Secs.
Language: English
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