The extracts from Britten’s letters and other writings are read by Dr Nicholas Clark, Librarian at Britten Pears Arts. The extracts from Curlew River are from the 1966 Decca recording directed by Britten and Viola Tunnard (with grateful thanks to Decca and Faber Music). The extracts from the English language performance of Sumida River were kindly provided by Dr Kevin Salfen from the University of the Incarnate Word, Texas. It was written by Richard Emmert, based on the play Sumidigawa by Kanze Motomasa. Shite (Madwoman) – Ōshima Kinue; Waki (Boatman) – Richard Emmert; Tsure (Traveller) – Matthew Dubroff; Kokata (Spirit of the Boy) – Miriam Dubroff; Otsuzumi – Ōkura Eitarō; Kotsuzumi – James Ferner; Nohkan – Kevin Salfen; Chorus Leader – Joyce Lim; Chorus – Members of Theatre Nohgaku and students at the University of the Incarnate Word.

The musical tracks in this podcast are all from A Ceremony of Carols. The recording is performed by the National Youth Girls Choir, with Vicky Lester on harp, conducted by Esther Jones. With grateful thanks to Delphian Records for allowing us to use extracts from this recording.

Tansy Davies' new piece for string orchestra and percussion, 'Monolith: I Extend My Arms' will be premiered at Snape Maltings on 26 June 2021 (a Britten Pears Arts commission). Tune in for a conversation about this piece, and about other fascinating compositions - including Tansy's operas 'Between Worlds' and 'Cave', and the horn piece 'Yoik'. 

Plus, some brilliant additions to our Podcast Playlist, and some further choices from Tansy: Frank Denyer, 'The Fish That Became The Sun' https://anothertimbre.bandcamp.com/album/the-fish-that-became-the-sun; and her own 'The rule is love' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOhPSzg4XyM&list=RDIOhPSzg4XyM&start_radio=1. 

Soprano Samantha Crawford and pianist Lana Bode have been collaborating on a remarkable project: dream.risk.sing. Their forthcoming recital and CD (with Delphian Records) focusses on women's voices. It is a programme of music mainly by female composers, and of texts by women (the proejct is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England). The CD will include a newly-commissioned set of songs by Charlotte Bray, setting texts by Nicki Jackowska, and the project as a whole aims to tell stories from all aspects of women's lives, from motherhood to the workplace to the legacies passed down the generations. Tune in to hear more about this exciting new project, the inspiration behind it, and the huge potential to explore further women's stories in song. Plus, as usual, some terrific songs for our Podcast playlist. 

Photo credit (Samantha Crawford): Rahil Ahmad

Tune in for a fascinating conversation between Lucy and Joe (who are both alumni of Edinburgh University!) about the rich and varied European choral tradition. The Chapel Royal at St James's Palace has an extraordinary history, intertwining the musical interests of English monarchs with the great musicians of the previous centuries, including Byrd, Tallis and Purcell. Joe is also researching the remarkable African-Portuguese composer of choral works Vicente Lusitano, born in the 1520s. Plus, the joys (and perils) of keyboard skills, improvising in an ensemble, the influence of Purcell on Benjamin Britten, and as usual the listening choices of both our contributors. 

As we celebrate a year of Britten Pears Arts, we welcome a new Trustee! Jamie Njoku-Goodwin has had a remarkable career, from a music degree at Nottingham University, to a move into the political sphere, and his  recent appointment as Chief Executive of UK Music. Tune in to hear a fascinating conversation about the emotional impact of music, how performing and hearing music can have a huge effect on our health and wellbeing, the devestating consequences of the pandemic on the music industry, and how we've all hugely missed live performance. Plus, some great tracks for our podcast playlist.

In this podcast during Women's History Month, Lucy and Anna have a fascinating conversation about a wide range of histories, and how historical stories are told. Tune in to hear about celebrities of the nineteenth century, the heroic figure of the British tenor (and how Italian tenors became the villains of romantic novels!), portraits and death masks of musicians, composer Ethel Smyth and her purple outfits, and the cliche of the 'tragic' female performer. Plus, the usual wide range of music our speakers have been listening to. 

Tune in for a wide-ranging conversation with Reverend Coles about his extraordinary life and variety of careers, his lifelong love of music of all kinds from Motown to Benjamin Britten, the experience of being an 'accidental popstar', life as a gay man and political activist in the 1980s, how Christian faith can manifest in music and in physical spaces, the great 'community' of both activism and the Church, and the life-changing effects of the recent lockdown. Plus, what our contributors (and dogs) have been listening to lately.

Tune in for the final episode before Christmas for a conversation about Anna's remarkable career, the rise of female conductors and organists, and the joy of transcribing orchestral works for organ. Plus, some further additions to our podcast playlist, including some festive treats.

Tune in to hear a conversation about songs on the concert stage and in the home, the relationships that inspire composers to write them, and fascinating insights into the ever-changing conventions of song performance. Plus, some further contributions to our podcast playlist.

Together they reflect on Britten’s place in the world on his 107th birthday, talk about what Britten Pears Arts has been doing this very unusual year, and to explore a fascinating collection of birthday-related items from the Red House collection. Plus, as usual, some further contributions to our Spotify playlist.

 In this extraordinary year, her arrangement of Jerusalem was premiered at the Last Night of the Proms; she has been nominated for an RPS award in the Large-Scale Composition category for her piece This Frame is Part of the Painting; and her new EP Peace on Earth is released on 13 November. Tune in for a conversation about approaches to composition, the central role of collaboration, racial politics and classical music, and what music makes Errollyn dance. Plus, further contributions to our Podcast Playlist, including Errollyn’s piece Are you Worried about the Rising Cost of Funerals. Also discussed was the Radio 3 programme Errollyn presented in 2019 on composer John Powell: A Racist Music.

Lucy is joined by two of this year's composers - Roderick Williams and Kerry Andrew - and by Sophia Allen, our Head of Community. Tune in to find out how the Friday Afternoons songs - past and present - have reached thousands of schoolchildren, and inspired creative artists of all kind.

Sean is one of the most adventurous musicians working today, combining classical and electronic music in his repertoire, and with a fascinating back catalogue of recordings, including the Gramophone award-winning softLOUD. Tune in for a discussion about Sean’s career to date, the challenges of 2020, adventurous concert-programming, and some surprising new contributions to our Podcast Playlist! 

Both Lucy’s and Callum’s work is all about encouraging as many people as possible to be involved in music – tune in to hear about music in schools, in the community, and how it benefits us all! Plus, further additions to our increasingly eclectic podcast playlist.

Justin has a longstanding association with The Red House and Snape Maltings, often visiting the UK, and is always looking for new ways to explore Britten's music in his scholarship and recital programmes. Tune in to find out more about this fascination for Britten and his world. Plus, what our podcasters have been listening to lately.

Tune in for a wide-ranging and illuminating conversation, covering matters musical, cultural and political - as well as 'Why Britten Matters'. Plus, further additions to our brilliantly eclectic From The Red House playlist. 

Stephen’s recent books include How Shostakovich Changed my Mind, a very personal response to Shostakovich’s works, and The Eighth, a study of Mahler’s Eighth Symphony, and the world from which it emerged. Join in for a wide-ranging and fascinating discussion – plus, what our contributors have been listening to recently.

Tune in to hear about Shankar’s extraordinary life and utter dedication to musicianship, captured vividly in this beautiful book. Also discussed is how Shankar’s life briefly, but significantly, intersected with Britten’s at various times. Plus, what our podcasters have been listening to lately.

Tune in for a wide-ranging conversation about the challenges of the lockdown, the thrill of live performance, getting back to vocal fitness, and the fascinating process of commissioning and co-creating new pieces. Plus, the eclectic range of pieces are contributors have been listening to recently.

To listen to the pieces featured, visit our 'From The Red House' Spotify playlist: https://spoti.fi/2B5ktA1

Go Go Theurgy by Anna Zaradny can be listened to here: https://bit.ly/3exg0UA

Image of Juliet Fraser © Dimitri Djuric

We will take a short break and resume for the next season at the beginning of August 2020.

Tune in for a fascinating discussion (recorded down the line from a café in Antwerp!), and hear about what Matthew has been listening to during lockdown. Please note, the sound quality is a little patchy, due to a somewhat intermittent connection. 

Roger Wright (Chief Executive), Sarah Bardwell (Executive Director) and Lucy Walker (Head, Public Programming) discuss the merger of Snape Maltings and Britten-Pears Foundation back in April, the shared aims and vision of this new organisation, and the challenges and experiences of working together during Covid-19. Plus, the listening choices of all our podcasters. 

Sarah has written, directed and performed in two Aldeburgh Festival Pumphouse shows over the last two years: Middagh Street (2018), a glorious evocation of Britten and Pears' months in a riotously bohemian house-share in 1940s; and Barlines (2019), an account of Michael Tippett's formative time spent in Wormwood Scrubs in 1943. Tune in for a conversation about biography and fiction, where the two crossover, and where they diverge. Plus, what our speakers have been listening to this week.

In this month’s podcast we celebrate the fascinating subject of song and singing. We start with Benjamin Britten, and his lifelong attachment to song – inspired to explore it in multiple ways by his partner Peter Pears’ voice, by poetry, and by the occasion he was composing for. Following his example, Britten Pears Arts has song at the very centre of its work. Lucy is joined by Dr Chris Hilton (Head of Archive and Library) and Caro Barnfield (Head of Music Programme) who discuss how song manifests in the continuing work of the organisation, from teasing out stories in the archive collections, to featuring strongly in the Britten Pears Young Artist Programme, to performances on the stage, and to serving the wider community. Lucy speaks to two further guests who have directly benefited from the remarkable song legacy of Britten Pears Arts, composer Arthur Keegan and mezzo-soprano Lotte Betts Dean. They are working together on a project based around the poetry of Thomas Hardy, a writer whose words have been passed from composer to composer over the last 100 years, continuing to find their way into song. The music extracts are performed by Lotte Betts Dean, James Girling and the Ligeti Quartet.

Tune in to hear about the origins of the Friday Afternoons project, its remarkable legacy, setting words to music (in this case, the brilliant poetry of Michael Rosen), how to write for childrens’ voices, and the joys and challenges of unusual commissions! Plus, find out what our podcasters have been listening to this week.

Find out about the fascinating and diverse Red House collections, the human stories they contain, how we talk about them (in person and in lockdown), and what makes archivists' blood pressure rise. Conversational byways lead to Magnus Pyke, roller-skates, the history of shopping, and the Windmill Theatre, as well as unusual places to store archives. Just don't call them 'dusty'. And as usual, find out what music our speakers have been listening to lately in our increasingly eclectic playlist.

Tune in for a discussion ranging across all matters musical, including concert-going, how to find a way into classical music, football matches, Disney films, adverts, and our participants’ musical blind spots. Plus, what both have been listening to lately.

Tune in for a discussion about the fascinating art of life writing: how you go about beginning a biography, how invested you get in the subject, the changing fashions in life writing, and exciting news about Oliver’s forthcoming publications. Also, find out what Lucy and Oliver have been listening to lately. 

Topics include: biography, life writing, classical music, Michael Tippett, Noël Coward and Benjamin Britten.

Topics include: the work of LGBT+ History Month and this year’s theme; the context of Britten and Pears’ relationship at a time when homosexuality was illegal, and how we tell their story at The Red House; the 2017 Red House exhibition Queer Talk; how attitudes to LGBT+ lives have changed, but also the challenges that still remain. Plus, what our contributors have been listening to lately.

To find out more, visit our podcast page on brittenpears.org

Social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube

Topics include: the background to the composer Benjamin Britten, his relationship with the tenor Peter Pears, their lives together at The Red House, and what visitors can experience when they come to the house. Also discussed is how ‘difficult’ some people find Britten’s music, and suggestions of how to get to know it. Plus, what our contributors have been listening to lately.

To find out more, visit our podcast page on brittenpears.org

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrittenOfficial

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrittenOfficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/BrittenOfficial/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/brittenofficial

In 2023 we mark the 400th anniversary of the deaths of two composers who wrote beautiful music, and who lived in extraordinary times. William Byrd (c.1540-1623) lived through a remarkably turbulent period of history, under no fewer than six monarchs. He wrote a huge amount of exquisite choral works, including Catholic masses which – depending who was on the throne – would only have been performed under conditions of secrecy.   Thomas Weelkes (1576-1623) was an organist and composer, best-known for his brilliant and vivid madrigals (as well as for his somewhat chaotic lifestyle). 

Music 

Opening and ending: ‘Kyrie’ and ‘Agnus Dei’ from Byrd’s Mass for Four Voices. Performed by the Marian Consort, conducted by Rory McCleery from the album Singing in Secret (Delphian, 2020).

During the podcast: Byrd’s ‘Ave verum corpus’. Performed by the Choir of Merton College, Oxford conducted by Peter Philips from the album Viri Galilaei: Favourite Anthems from Merton (Delphian, 2016).

With grateful thanks to Delphian for giving us permission to use these recordings.  

Tune in to the final podcast of Season 3 (recorded in June 2021) to hear about Alma Mahler's work, the potent combination of opera, film and fashion house (a link to the film Elise discusses can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhgwmZQVgJE), and the power of song to connect people in isolation. Plus, some beautiful tracks for the podcast playlist.

Tune in to hear more about Hannah's work, how she has been inspired by Britten's music, how the life and work of both Britten and Pears can still be sensed at The Red House, and what a Creative Retreat in the grounds of their former home has meant to her. Plus, further additions to the podcast playlist - four brilliant tracks that are all about couples.

Tune in to find out how Alternative Classical engages with new listeners, how to explore an exciting range of classical music performances, and how to play Concert Roulette! Plus, as usual there are some excellent additions to the podcast playlist.

Tune in for a remarkable conversation about the environment, music, Britten's home town of Lowestoft, the fascinating and valuable relationships between musicians and environmental causes, and how music of all kinds can deeply affect the emotions.

Tune in for a fascinating conversation about the background, creation, and ethos of the multi-media music piece BEAM: Everybody Can Stand in their Own Light. The remarkable creative team behind this work (Nadine Benjamin, lead artists/co-dramaturg, Darren Abrahams, co-dramaturg and trauma specialist, and Claire Shovelton, senior producer and photographer) have a background not only in music but in psychology, the treatment of trauma, and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP).  The podcast explores the powerful effect of music in myriad ways, including the treatment of trauma. The team also discuss their aspirations regarding new ways of collaborative working.

Plus, some contributions to our podcast playlist, plus two excerpts from BEAM - 'E strano' from Verdi's La Traviata (recording from Nadine's 'Love and Prayer' album), and 'Champagne Queen'.

Lyrics and  Melody written by Nadine Benjamin and Music written by Nadine Benjamin and  IZIT-U

Guitar - Dan Bell

Bass - Oli Lee

Drums - Aidan Torode 

Keys - Jake Bowser  

BEAM was supported by a Britten Pears Arts residency.
Photo: Claire Shovelton