''Britten's Purcell Realizations'' is a common name for compositions for voice and piano by

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

which are arrangements of works by

Henry Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer. Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest E ...

Boosey & Hawkes Boosey & Hawkes is a British music publisher purported to be the largest specialist classical music publisher in the world. Until 2003, it was also a major manufacturer of brass, string and woodwind musical instruments. Formed in 1930 throu ...

published 45 of them, titled ''The Purcell Collection – Realizations by Benjamin Britten''. A recording of 40 of them, ''Purcell Songs Realised by Britten'', was released in 2016.

History

In 1945, there was a commemoration of the 250th anniversary of Purcell's death, raising interest in the composer. Britten began that year to arrange songs, duets and a trio by Purcell, writing out—or "realizing"—Purcell's

figured bass Figured bass is musical notation in which numerals and symbols appear above or below (or next to) a bass note. The numerals and symbols (often accidentals) indicate intervals, chords, and non-chord tones that a musician playing piano, harpsic ...

as an accompaniment for piano, sometimes taking great liberty with the original composition. He chose songs,

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

s and

duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...

s by Purcell, or attributed to him, from ''

Harmonia Sacra ''Harmonia Sacra'' is a Mennonite shape note hymn and tune book, originally published as ''A Compilation of Genuine Church Music'' in 1832 ( Winchester, Virginia) by Joseph Funk (1778–1862). The original publication was a "four-shape" shape no ...

'', ''

Orpheus Britannicus ''Orpheus Britannicus'' is a collection of songs by Henry Purcell, published posthumously in London in two volumes, the first in 1698 and the second in 1702. In the preface to the first volume, Henry Playford, the printer of the volume and the so ...

'', ''The Queen's Epicedium'', ''

Dido and Aeneas ''Dido and Aeneas'' (Z. 626) is an opera in a prologue and three acts, written by the English Baroque composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate. The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain. It was co ...

'' and '' The Fairy Queen''. The Britten-Pears Foundation acquired a manuscript of one of the realizations in 2019, a version of ''The Blessed Virgin's Expostulation'' which Britten wrote for a concert at

Wigmore Hall Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadin ...

in 1945. The text, by

Nahum Tate Nahum Tate ( ; 1652 – 30 July 1715) was an Irish poet, hymnist and lyricist, who became Poet Laureate in 1692. Tate is best known for ''The History of King Lear'', his 1681 adaptation of Shakespeare's ''King Lear'', and for his libretto for ...

, is of Mary's distress when she discovers that her 12-year-old son is missing. It was sung by Margaret Ritchie, to whom the setting is dedicated.

published 45 of Britten's settings in a volume titled ''The Purcell Collection – Realizations by Benjamin Britten''.

Recordings

Recordings have been dedicated to selections from the realizations. The "complete" set, 40 songs, was recorded in 1995, with nine singers,

John Mark Ainsley John Mark Ainsley (born 9 July 1963) is an English lyric tenor. Known for his supple voice, Ainsley is particularly admired for his interpretations of baroque music and the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In the course of his career, he has g ...

Ian Bostridge Ian Charles Bostridge CBE (born 25 December 1964) is an English tenor, well known for his performances as an opera and lieder singer. Early life and education Bostridge was born in London, the son of Leslie Bostridge and Lillian (née Clark). ...

, James Bowman,

Susan Gritton Susan Gritton (born 31 August 1965) is an English operatic soprano. She was the 1994 winner of the Kathleen Ferrier Award and has sung leading roles in a wide-ranging repertoire from Handel and Mozart to Britten, Janáček and Strauss. Life a ...

, Richard Jackson,

Anthony Rolfe Johnson Anthony Rolfe Johnson (5 November 1940 – 21 July 2010) was an English operatic tenor. Early life Anthony Rolfe Johnson was born in Tackley in Oxfordshire. As a boy, he demonstrated musical ability and sang as a boy soprano, making a record ...

Simon Keenlyside Sir Simon Keenlyside (born 3 August 1959) is a British baritone who has performed in operas and concerts since the mid-1980s. Biography Early life and education Keenlyside was born in London, the son of Raymond and Ann Keenlyside. Raymond play ...

Felicity Lott Dame Felicity Ann Emwhyla Lott, (born 8 May 1947) is an English soprano. Education Lott was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. From her earliest years she was musical, having started studying piano at age 5. She also played violin and bega ...

and Sarah Walker, and pianist Graham Johnson. Another "complete set", called ''Purcell Songs Realised by Britten'', was recorded in 2016 with singers

Robin Blaze Robin Blaze (born 1971 in Manchester) is an English countertenor. Early life The son of Peter Blaze, a professional golfer, and Christine, Blaze and his brother Mark grew up in Shadwell, near Leeds, and was educated at Leeds Grammar School, ...

Allan Clayton Allan James Clayton (1981) is a British tenor singer. Clayton was a chorister at Worcester Cathedral and a choral scholar in the Choir of St John's College, Cambridge. He was a BBC New Generation Artist from 2007-09 and winner of the Royal Ph ...

, Anna Grevelius, Ruby Hughes, Benedict Nelson and Matthew Rose, and pianist

Joseph Middleton Joseph Middleton (born 10 January 1981) is a British classical pianist and lied accompanist. Biography Middleton was born in Cirencester, Gloucestershire. At school he played piano, violin, flute and organ. He read music at the University of Birm ...

References

External links

* Blaine Gregory Hendsbee
The Britten-Purcell realisations : connecting the past to the present through the voice of Peter Pears
open.library.ubc 2007
Purcell + Britten = ?
goodmorningbritten.wordpress.com 23 August 2013
Britten - Purcell Realizations
prestomusic.com {{italic title Compositions by Benjamin Britten

Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...