Carcanet Press - Benjamin Britten's Poets: An Anthology of the Poems He Set to Music

Benjamin Britten's Poets: An Anthology of the Poems He Set to Music

Categories: 20th Century, Anthologies, British, War writings
Imprint: Carcanet Poetry
Publisher: Carcanet Press
Available as:

Paperback (328 pages)

(Pub. May 1996)

9781857542400

Out of Stock

Description
Excerpt
Author

O dear white children casual as birds,
    Playing among the ruined languages,
    So small beside their large confusing words,
    So gay against the greater silences
    Of dreadful things you did.

W.H. Auden, 'Anthem for St Cecilia's Day',
for Benjamin Britten

Benjamin Britten was a great reader of poetry, and poetry profoundly affected his musical genius and style of composition. Friendships and collaborations with writers -- Auden and Forster among them -- left their mark. No other composer of songs, not even Schubert or Schumann, set poems of such range and quality. All the 360 poems Britten set are included in this book. They range from Donne's complex 'Holy Sonnets' to the deceptive simplicity of Blake's 'Oh rose thou art sick'. They include anonymous ballads, modern work and poems in other languages (with translations). Full details of the source and use of each poem are given.

Benjamin Britten

Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) was an English composer, conductor and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British classical music. His best-known works include the opera Peter Grimes (1945) and the War Requiem (1962). ... read more

Boris Ford

Boris Ford commissioned Benjamin Britten to write the children's opera Noye's Fludde when he was Head of Schools Broadcasting for Independent Television. His distinguished career has included a variety of professional and academic posts. He was general editor of The New Pelican Guide to English Literature and The Cambridge Guide to ... read more

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Benjamin Britten's Poets: An Anthology of the Poems He Set to Music Benjamin Britten Edited by Boris Ford Categories: 20th Century, Anthologies, British, War writings Imprint: Carcanet Poetry Publisher: Carcanet Press Available as: Paperback (328 pages) (Pub. May 1996) 9781857542400 Out of Stock Description Excerpt Author O dear white children casual as birds, Playing among the ruined languages, So small beside their large confusing words, So gay against the greater silences Of dreadful things you did. W.H. Auden, 'Anthem for St Cecilia's Day', for Benjamin Britten Benjamin Britten was a great reader of poetry, and poetry profoundly affected his musical genius and style of composition. Friendships and collaborations with writers -- Auden and Forster among them -- left their mark. No other composer of songs, not even Schubert or Schumann, set poems of such range and quality. All the 360 poems Britten set are included in this book. They range from Donne's complex 'Holy Sonnets' to the deceptive simplicity of Blake's 'Oh rose thou art sick'. They include anonymous ballads, modern work and poems in other languages (with translations). Full details of the source and use of each poem are given. Benjamin Britten Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) was an English composer, conductor and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British classical music. His best-known works include the opera Peter Grimes (1945) and the War Requiem (1962). ... read more Boris Ford Boris Ford commissioned Benjamin Britten to write the children's opera Noye's Fludde when he was Head of Schools Broadcasting for Independent Television. His distinguished career has included a variety of professional and academic posts. He was general editor of The New Pelican Guide to English Literature and The Cambridge Guide to ... read more You might also be interested in: New Poetries V Edited by Michael Schmidt with Eleanor Crawforth Oxford Poets 2013 AndrÃ© Naffis-Sahely, Karen McCarthy Woolf, Edited by Iain Galbraith and Robyn Marsack Wordsworth's Poets Edited by Duncan Wu	Share this... Quick Links Carcanet Poetry Carcanet Classics Carcanet Fiction Carcanet Film Lives and Letters PN Review Video Carcanet Celebrates 50 Years! The Carcanet Blog One Little Room: Peter McDonald read more Collected Poems: Mimi Khalvati read more Invisible Dog: Fabio Morbito, translated by Richard Gwyn read more Dante's Purgatorio: Philip Terry read more Billy 'Nibs' Buckshot: John Gallas read more Emotional Support Horse: Claudine Toutoungi read more
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Benjamin Britten's Poets: An Anthology of the Poems He Set to Music

Benjamin Britten

Edited by Boris Ford