As Walker, the academic research officer at the Britten-Pears foundation, states in her introduction, this group of essays on Benjamin Britten reflect a new perspective in that the authors are either young scholars, approaching Britten in the light of recent theory or established ones who are approaching Britten for the first time and bring a comparative approach to the study. Articles consider the recent proliferation of Britten's early compositions, some never performed, and how they should be regarded as part of his complete oeuvre. Others look at Britten's friendship with Shostakovich and the similarities between the "War Requiem" and Shostakovich's 14th symphony. Others discuss Britten's work scoring films and the innovation of writing the opera Owen Wingrave for television, only translated later to the stage. The influence of Verdi on Britten is examined, as well as the themes he drew from classical mythology. Britten's early lukewarm reception in France, particularly Paris, is another subject. An alternate reason for Britten's return to England in 1942 is also suggested in the light of his passionate pacifism. An unusual study looks at the libretto of an opera that Britten rejected. These essays should spark discussion among scholars and fans of Britten. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
An essay collection which examines Britten's juvenilia, influences such as Shostakovich and Verdi, his opera Owen Wingrave and a libretto written by Australian novelist Patrick White with the hope of a future collaboration.
Benjamin Britten: New Perspectives on his Life and Work reveals the extent to which Britten scholarship is reaching outside the confines of Anglo-American criticism. The volume engages with juvenilia and other orchestral works from the 1920s and examines a broad range of influences on Britten, including the works of Shostakovich and Verdi, the poetry of Ovid, and the cinema. Among his operatic works the dramatic qualities of Owen Wingrave are discussed through a close study of Piper's libretto and we witness the genesis of a libretto written by Australian novelist Patrick White and submitted to Britten with the hope of a future collaboration. The volume uncovers the generally hostile reception Britten's operas received in Paris until around the 1990s. Britten's status as 'outsider' in both the USA and in his own country when he returned in 1942 is discussed: the possibility is that Britten was becoming nervous of the gathering US involvement in the war and the real chance he may be called up to serve in the US forces is also discussed here.
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