Peter Pears

Composers

Biography

Born: June 22, 1910; Farnham, England   Died: April 3, 1986; Aldeburgh, England  
Peter Pears, for many years, embodied British vocal music, both opera and song. Benjamin Britten wrote 14 operas and over 50 songs and song cycles for him, and he appeared in the premieres of many other major English works. He was one of the three founders of the Aldeburgh Festival, and he and Britten established the Britten/Pears School for Advanced Musical Studies, where he directed the various singing programs until his death.

Given Read more these impressive credentials and influence, it is rather surprising that as a singer he had distinct limitations. While he was capable of excellent singing, his voice was not especially beautiful, with a rather reedy tone, and at times also with a pronounced wobble. However, his musical intelligence, elegant phrasing, and expressive use of text and the vocal line were to create his place in music history.

His first musical career plan was to be an organist, and he studied that at the Hertford College of Oxford, but he later enrolled at the Royal College of Music in London, where he remained from 1933 to 1935 as an "Operatic Exhibitioner." He then pursued studies with Elena Gerhardt and Dawson Freer. He began his professional singing career as a member of the BBC Singers in 1934, and it was through that group that he and Britten first met.

His first recital with Britten was in 1937 at Balliol, followed by a tour of the United States and Europe performing chamber music, including material written by Britten. When they returned, they performed his Michelangelo Sonnets at Wigmore Hall. His operatic debut was as Hoffmann in Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann at the Strand Theater in London in 1942; he joined the Sadler's Wells Opera Company in 1943, singing lyric tenor leads. Britten had begun to write the role of Peter Grimes for him, with funding from the Koussevitsky Foundation, and the opera had its world premiere in 1945 at the Sadler's Wells. Thereafter, while he still appeared in other composer's works, he and Britten were an established musical team, and the next decades saw the appearances of many more operas written for Pears. In 1946, he created the role of the Male Chorus in The Rape of Lucretia, the title role of Albert Herring in 1947, Captain Vere in Billy Budd in 1951, Essex in Gloriana in 1963, Peter Quint in The Turn of the Screw in 1954, Flute in A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1960, and Aschenbach in Death in Venice in 1973. He also created the role of Pandarus in Walton's Troilus and Cressida. In the song repertoire, he premiered Berkeley's Stabat Mater, Tippett's A Child of Our Time and Boyhood's End, as well as Britten's Michelangelo Sonnets, Donne Sonnets, and Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings, to name just the most famous. He was a noted student of early music, frequently performing English lute songs in his recitals, and he and Britten published editions of several songs by Purcell.

While most strongly associated with English music and English venues, he was also a noted soloist at the Holland Festival and the Salzburg Festival.

Pears and Britten were necessarily discreet about the intimate nature of their relationship, but in music history, their lifelong partnership and love affair is one of the most productive and influential, perhaps surpassed only by that of Robert and Clara Schumann. They are buried next to one another in Aldeburgh. Read less

Featured Peter Pears CDs & DVDs:

Britten: Peter Grimes / Pears, Harper, Britten
Britten: Peter Grimes / Pears, Harper, Britten
Release Date: 07/08/2008   Label: Decca  
Catalog: 001147709  
On sale!
DVD: $24.99
In Stock
BUY 
On sale!   $29.98   DVD:  $24.99 Add to Cart

Peter Pears - An Anniversary Tribute
Peter Pears - An Anniversary Tribute
Release Date: 06/22/2010   Label: Decca  
Catalog: 001437802   Number of Discs: 6
On sale!
CD: $28.99
In Stock
BUY 
On sale!   $39.98   CD:  $28.99 Add to Cart

Stravinsky: Oedipus Rex / Stravinsky, Pears, Modl, Rohr, Krebs
Stravinsky: Oedipus Rex / Stravinsky, Pears, Modl, Rohr, Krebs
Release Date: 04/30/2013   Label: Acanta/Pilz  
Catalog: 233694   Number of Discs: 2
CD: $24.99
In Stock
BUY 
CD:  $24.99 Add to Cart

Browse 1-25 of 136 Available Recordings
1 2 3 4 5 6
  • 1.
    Stravinsky: Oedipus Rex / Stravinsky, Pears, Modl, Rohr, Krebs
    Stravinsky: Oedipus Rex / Stravinsky, Pears, Modl, Rohr, Krebs
    Label: Acanta/Pilz   Catalog: 233694 Release Date: 04/30/2013   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Igor Stravinsky
    Performer:  Martha Mödl,  Otto Von Rohr,  Heinz Rehfuss,  Helmut Krebs  ... 
    Conductor:  Igor Stravinsky
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Cologne West German Radio Symphony Orchestra,  Northwest German Radio Chorus
    CD: $24.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $24.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 2.
    Britten: Albert Herring / Pears, Brannigan, Noble, Fisher, Britten, English Chamber Orchestra
    Britten: Albert Herring / Pears, Brannigan, Noble, Fisher, Britten, English Chamber Orchestra
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 001820402 Release Date: 04/09/2013   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten
    Performer:  Sylvia Fisher,  Johanna Peters,  April Cantelo,  John Noble  ... 
    Conductor:  Benjamin Britten
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  English Chamber Orchestra
    On sale! $19.98
    CD: $17.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $19.98   CD:  $17.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 3.
    Lutoslawski: Symphony No. 3; Concerto For Orchestra
    Lutoslawski: Symphony No. 3; Concerto For Orchestra
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 001752502 Release Date: 12/11/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Witold Lutoslawski
    Performer:  Peter Pears
    Conductor:  Witold Lutoslawski,  Witold Rowicki
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Sinfonietta,  Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra,  Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra
    CD: $13.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $13.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 4.
    Tchaikovsky: Rococo Variations; Gloriana Excerpts / Rostropovich, Pears, Britten
    Tchaikovsky: Rococo Variations; Gloriana Excerpts / Rostropovich, Pears, Britten
    Label: Ica Classics   Catalog: 5025 Release Date: 11/13/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky,  Benjamin Britten
    Performer:  Mstislav Rostropovich,  Peter Pears
    Conductor:  Benjamin Britten
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  English Chamber Orchestra,  Aldeburgh Festival Chorus
    DVD: $24.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    DVD:  $24.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 5.
    Murray Perahia - The First 40 Years
    Murray Perahia - The First 40 Years
    Label: Sony   Catalog: 191256 Release Date: 11/06/2012   Number of Discs: 73
    Composer:  Johann Sebastian Bach,  Béla Bartók,  Ludwig van Beethoven,  Robert Schumann  ... 
    Performer:  Murray Perahia,  Michael Cox,  Leonore Smith,  Kenneth Sillito  ... 
    Conductor:  Murray Perahia,  Bernard Haitink,  Zubin Mehta,  Sir Colin Davis  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Academy of St. Martin in the Fields,  Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra,  Amadeus String Quartet members  ... 
    Recommendation
    On sale!
    CD: $139.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $199.98   CD:  $139.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 6.
    The Voice Of Peter Pears
    The Voice Of Peter Pears
    Label: Regis   Catalog: 1393 Release Date: 10/30/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Thomas Ford,  John Dowland,  Thomas Morley,  Philip Rosseter  ... 
    Performer:  Julian Bream,  Peter Pears,  Benjamin Britten
    CD: $11.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $11.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 7.
    Britten: Nocturne; Mozart: Symphony No 40 / Benjamin Britten
    Britten: Nocturne; Mozart: Symphony No 40 / Benjamin Britten
    Label: Ica Classics   Catalog: 5083 Release Date: 09/25/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    Performer:  Peter Pears
    Conductor:  Benjamin Britten
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  English Chamber Orchestra
    DVD: $24.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    DVD:  $24.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 8.
    Folk Songs Of The British Isles
    Folk Songs Of The British Isles
    Label: Griffin   Catalog: 4078 Release Date: 09/25/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Traditional,  Charles Jeffreys,  James L. Molloy,  Delia Murphy  ... 
    Performer:  Phyllis Spurr,  Gerald Moore,  Owen Brannigan,  Benjamin Britten  ... 
    Conductor:  Robert Wilson,  Hugh S. Roberton,  Bob Sharples,  Ivor E. Sims  ... 
    CD: $13.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $13.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 9.
    Britten: The Little Sweep; Cantata Academica
    Label: Heritage   Catalog: 236 Release Date: 07/17/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten
    Performer:  Harold Lester,  Jennifer Vyvyan,  Owen Brannigan,  Peter Pears
    Conductor:  Benjamin Britten,  George Malcolm
    On sale! $16.98
    CD: $12.49
    Low Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $16.98   CD:  $12.49 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 10.
    English Song
    Label: Heritage Records   Catalog: 224 Release Date: 07/17/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Thomas Ford,  Philip Rosseter,  John Dowland,  Thomas Morley  ... 
    Performer:  Julian Bream,  Peter Pears,  Benjamin Britten
    On sale! $16.98
    CD: $12.49
    Low Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $16.98   CD:  $12.49 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 11.
    Britten Rarities / Hahessy, Bowden, Procter, Pears
    Britten Rarities / Hahessy, Bowden, Procter, Pears
    Label: Eloquence   Catalog: 4802296 Release Date: 07/03/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  Henry Purcell
    Performer:  Benjamin Britten,  John Hahessy,  Michael Berkeley,  Norma Procter  ... 
    Conductor:  Benjamin Britten,  Sir David Willcocks,  Bryan Balkwill,  Walter Goehr
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Cambridge King's College Choir,  Cambridge University Musical Society Chorus,  Suisse Romande Orchestra  ... 
    Recommendation
    CD: $12.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $12.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 12.
    Schubert: Lieder On Record (1898-2012) [17-CD Set]
    Schubert: Lieder On Record (1898-2012) [17-CD Set]
    Label: Emi Classics   Catalog: 27575 Release Date: 07/03/2012   Number of Discs: 17
    Composer:  Franz Schubert
    Performer:  Peter Schreier,  Steven Zehr,  Thomas Hampson,  Wolfgang Sawallisch  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Orchestra
    On sale! $59.98
    CD: $47.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $59.98   CD:  $47.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 13.
    English Song
    English Song
    Label: Heritage   Catalog: 224 Release Date: 05/15/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Thomas Ford,  Philip Rosseter,  John Dowland,  Thomas Morley  ... 
    Performer:  Peter Pears,  Julian Bream,  Benjamin Britten
    CD: $15.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $15.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 14.
    Magnificat - 500 Years Of Choral Masterworks [50-CD Set]
    Magnificat - 500 Years Of Choral Masterworks [50-CD Set]
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 001664502 Release Date: 04/10/2012   Number of Discs: 50
    Composer:  Gregorio Allegri,  Antonio Lotti,  Orlando de Lassus,  Josquin Des Préz  ... 
    Performer:  Patrick Russill,  Marinella Pennicchi,  Michael Chance,  Mark Tucker  ... 
    Conductor:  Harry Christophers,  Paul McCreesh,  Stephen Cleobury,  Edward Wickham  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  The Sixteen,  Gabrieli Consort,  Gabrieli Players  ... 
    On sale! $169.98
    CD: $133.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $169.98   CD:  $133.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 15.
    Folksongs / Peter Pears, Benjamin Britten
    Folksongs / Peter Pears, Benjamin Britten
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 430063 Release Date: 04/03/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten
    Performer:  Benjamin Britten,  Peter Pears
    ArkivCD $16.99
    Low Stock
    BUY 
    ArkivCD:  $16.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 16.
    Kathleen Ferrier - The Complete Decca Recordings [14 CDs + DVD]
    Kathleen Ferrier - The Complete Decca Recordings [14 CDs + DVD]
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 001654200 Release Date: 03/20/2012   Number of Discs: 15
    Composer:  Christoph W. Gluck,  Johann Sebastian Bach,  Franz Schubert,  Franz Xaver Gruber  ... 
    Performer:  Zoe Vlachopoulos,  Ann Ayars,  Kathleen Ferrier,  Thornton Lofthouse  ... 
    Conductor:  Fritz Stiedry,  Reginald Jacques,  Boyd Neel,  Sir John Barbirolli  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Glyndebourne Festival Chorus,  Southern Philharmonic Orchestra,  Bach Choir  ... 
    Recommendation
    On sale! $89.98
    CD: $72.49
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $89.98   CD:  $72.49 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 17.
    Joan Sutherland: A Portrait
    Joan Sutherland: A Portrait
    Label: Regis   Catalog: 3013 Release Date: 03/13/2012   Number of Discs: 3
    Composer:  George Frideric Handel,  Giuseppe Verdi,  Vincenzo Bellini,  Charles Gounod  ... 
    Performer:  Dame Joan Sutherland,  Peter Pears,  Owen Brannigan,  George Malcolm
    Conductor:  Sir Adrian Boult,  Anthony Lewis
    Recommendation
    On sale! $31.98
    CD: $21.49
    Low Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $31.98   CD:  $21.49 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 18.
    Britten: Music For Voice & Guitar / Peter Pears, Julian Bream
    Britten: Music For Voice & Guitar / Peter Pears, Julian Bream
    Label: Newton Classics   Catalog: 8802095 Release Date: 01/31/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  Mátyás Seiber,  Peter Racine Fricker,  Sir William Walton
    Performer:  Peter Pears,  Julian Bream
    Recommendation
    CD: $12.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $12.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 19.
    The Decca Sound - Highlights [5-CD Set]
    The Decca Sound - Highlights [5-CD Set]
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 001620002 Release Date: 11/15/2011   Number of Discs: 5
    Composer:  Giacomo Puccini,  Béla Bartók,  Benjamin Britten,  Sergei Rachmaninov  ... 
    Performer:  Montserrat Caballé,  Luciano Pavarotti,  Dame Joan Sutherland,  Renata Tebaldi  ... 
    Conductor:  Zubin Mehta,  Franco Capuana,  István Kertész,  Benjamin Britten  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Philharmonic Orchestra,  John Alldis Choir,  Wandsworth School Boys' Choir  ... 
    On sale! $29.98
    CD: $24.49
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $29.98   CD:  $24.49 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 20.
    The Original Jacket Collection - Julian Bream
    The Original Jacket Collection - Julian Bream
    Label: Sony   Catalog: 731621 Release Date: 10/04/2011   Number of Discs: 10
    Composer:  Girolamo Frescobaldi,  Mateo Pérez de Albeniz,  Domenico Scarlatti,  Domenico Cimarosa  ... 
    Performer:  Julian Bream,  John Williams,  George Malcolm,  Peter Pears
    Conductor:  Sir Colin Davis
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Julian Bream Consort
    On sale!
    CD: $53.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $55.98   CD:  $53.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 21.
    British Composers - Britten, Berkeley & Rubbra
    British Composers - Britten, Berkeley & Rubbra
    Label: Emi Classics   Catalog: 29006 Release Date: 08/23/2011   Number of Discs: 5
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  Edmund Rubbra,  Lennox Berkeley
    Performer:  Joan Cross,  Tom Culbert,  Peter Pears,  Denis Dowling  ... 
    Conductor:  Reginald Goodall,  Benjamin Britten,  Herbert Menges,  Norman Del Mar  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra,  BBC Theater Chorus,  English Opera Group  ... 
    CD: $33.99
    Low Stock
    BUY 
    CD:  $33.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 22.
    Bach: St. Matthew Passion / Wunderlich, Pears, Prey, Munchinger
    Bach: St. Matthew Passion / Wunderlich, Pears, Prey, Munchinger
    Label: Eloquence   Catalog: 4805015 Release Date: 05/31/2011   Number of Discs: 3
    Composer:  Johann Sebastian Bach
    Performer:  Hermann Prey,  Elly Ameling,  Marga Höffgen,  Heinz Wunderlich  ... 
    Conductor:  Karl Münchinger
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Stuttgart Hymnus Boys Choir,  Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra
    On sale! $23.98
    Import CD
    $19.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $23.98   CD:  $19.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 23.
    Handel: Messiah, Acis And Galatea / Sutherland, Bumbry, Pears, Boult
    Handel: Messiah, Acis And Galatea / Sutherland, Bumbry, Pears, Boult
    Label: Eloquence   Catalog: 4804924 Release Date: 05/31/2011   Number of Discs: 3
    Composer:  George Frideric Handel
    Performer:  Grace Bumbry,  Dame Joan Sutherland,  Kenneth McKellar,  David Ward  ... 
    Conductor:  Sir Adrian Boult
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Symphony Orchestra,  London Symphony Chorus,  Philomusica of London  ... 
    On sale! $29.98
    CD: $24.99
    Low Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $29.98   CD:  $24.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 24.
    British Composers: A Celebration
    British Composers: A Celebration
    Label: Emi Classics   Catalog: 95480 Release Date: 05/03/2011   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  Charles Hubert Parry,  Gustav Holst,  Ralph Vaughan Williams  ... 
    Performer:  Ian Hare,  Sir Andrew Davis,  Bruce Russell,  Robert Tear  ... 
    Conductor:  Sir David Willcocks,  Sir Adrian Boult,  Sir Andrew Davis,  Christopher Bishop  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Academy of St. Martin in the Fields,  London Philharmonic Orchestra,  London Philharmonic Choir  ... 
    Recommendation
    CD: $12.99
    Low Stock
    MP3 Available
    BUY 
    CD:  $12.99 Add to Cart

    MP3:  $7.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

  • 25.
    Britten: Serenade For Tenor, Horn & Strings; Winter Words; Seven Sonnets Of Michelangelo
    Britten: Serenade For Tenor, Horn & Strings; Winter Words; Seven Sonnets Of Michelangelo
    Label: Regis   Catalog: 1365 Release Date: 02/22/2011   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten
    Performer:  Peter Pears,  Dennis Brain,  Benjamin Britten
    Conductor:  Sir Eugene Goossens
    On sale! $11.98
    CD: $9.99
    In Stock
    BUY 
    On sale!   $11.98   CD:  $9.99 Add to Cart

    WISH LIST

1 2 3 4 5 6