Music TheoryPrint

Benjamin Britten

Canticles (Britten)

The Canticles constitute a series of five musical works by composer Benjamin Britten. The pieces were written at various points in his career, with three of them written as memorials. Instrumentation

Canticles#

  • Canticle I: My beloved is mine and I am his, Op. 40. was written in 1947 for the memorial concert for Dick Sheppard, former vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields. The lyrics are from “A Divine Rapture” by Francis Quarles, based on the Song of Solomon in the Bible. It is scored for high voice and piano.
  • Canticle II: Abraham and Isaac. Op. 51, was written in 1952 for Peter Pears, Kathleen Ferrier and Britten to perform as a fundraiser for the English Opera Group. The text is based on the Abraham and Isaac story as depicted in the Chester Mystery Plays.
  • Canticle III: “Still falls the rain”, Op. 55, was written for voice, horn, and piano in 1954 in memory of Australian pianist Noel Mewton-Wood. The text is based on the 1941 Edith Sitwell poem of the same title.
  • Canticle IV: “The Journey of the Magi”, Op. 86, was written in 1971 for countertenor, tenor, baritone and piano, with text based on the T. S. Eliot poem “Journey of the Magi”.
  • Canticle V: The Death of Saint Narcissus, Op. 89, was written in 1974 in memory of William Plomer. It was written for performance by Peter Pears and harpist Osian Ellis.

*Britten: Five Canticles, Hyperion Records

Composer
Benjamin Britten