Biographies
- White, Eric Walter. Benjamin Britten: His Life and Operas. 2nd ed. London:
Faber & Faber, 1983. 322p. ISBN 0-571-18066-3. ML410 .B853 W4.
The publishers have chosen a confusing way of identifying various versions of
this work. The first edition was 1948, a second edition appeared in 1954, and
a clearly labeled third edition in 1970. So the new second is a further revision
of the third. It is mainly a collection of program notes; in the author’s words:
“These little essays... lay no claim to offer musical analyses in depth.” Useful
chronology of published works and list of premieres. Good illustrations, weak
bibliography of about 25 items, index of names, titles, and topics. - Carpenter, Humphrey. Benjamin Britten: A Biography. New York: Scribner,
- x, 677p. ISBN 0-684-19569-0. ML410 .B853 C37.
A subjective life story, emphasizing emotional matters (Britten is portrayed as
a “perpetual child”) and connecting those readings to compositional ques-
tions. Useful for behind-the-scenes depictions of the writing and producing of
the operas and other works. Primary sources used. Worklist, strong indexes of
titles, names, and topics. - Kennedy, Michael. Britten. Rev. ed. London: Dent, 1993. 355p. ISBN 0-460-
86077-1. ML410 .B853 K45.
First edition, 1981. A useful life and works, if even more adulatory than aver-
age for a Britten book; the author wrote it “mainly as a celebration of the joy
his music has brought me for over forty years.” Worklist and discography.
Operas in General
- Whittall, Arnold. Britten and Tippett: Studies in Themes and Techniques. 2nd
ed. New York: Cambridge U.P., 1990. vii, 314p. ISBN 0-521-38501-6. ML390
.B853 W38.
First edition, 1982. A technical comparison of the works of the two composers,
grounded in Schenker theory. Britten is found to employ “extended tonality and
emancipation of the dissonance,” while Tippett prefers “emancipation of the
consonance” and a blurring of the line between “extended tonality” and
“restricted atonality.” Interesting, complex analyses. Bibliography, index. - Evans, Peter. The Music of Benjamin Britten. Rev. ed. London: Dent, 1989.
574p. ISBN 0-460-12607-5. ML410 .B853 E9.
First edition, 1979. A chapter on each work, presenting some technical analy-
sis (notably for Billy Budd); but essentially this is a book of sophisticated pro-
gram notes. More than 300 musical examples, worklist, bibliography of about
75 titles, name index. - Howard, Patricia. The Operas of Benjamin Britten: An Introduction. New
York: Praeger, 1969. 236p. Reprint, Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 1976.
ISBN 0-214-66055-9 (Praeger). MT100 .B778 B7.
Synopsis and program notes for each opera (except Death in Venice,not yet
written), with 102 musical examples. No bibliography, no index.
134 Opera