Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM, CH was an English composer, conductor and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British classical music, with a range of works including opera, other vocal music, orchestral and chamber pieces. His best-known works include the opera
Peter Grimes, the
War Requiem and the orchestral showpiece
The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. Born in Suffolk, the son of a dentist, Britten showed talent from an early age. He studied at the Royal College of Music in London and privately with the composer Frank Bridge. Britten first came to public attention with the
a cappella choral work
A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of
Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to international fame. Over the next 28 years, he wrote 14 more operas, establishing himself as one of the leading 20th-century composers in the genre. In addition to large-scale operas for Sadler's Wells and Covent Garden, he wrote "chamber operas" for small forces, suitable for performance in venues of modest size. Among the best known of these is
The Turn of the Screw.