The Faber Pocket Guide to Britten

John Bridcut, author of the acclaimed 'Britten's Children', will include significant fresh material which will make the book indispensable for Britten aficionados as well as for those who are discovering the composer's music for the first time. This guide is all about finding a way into Britten's music. An outline of planned chapters: - The Top Ten Britten pieces - Critics' First Impressions - Britten's Life - Britten and Pears - The things they said - The Music (stage works, choral works, songs, chamber music, orchestral works) - The Interpreters of Britten's work - Britten as Performer - The Impresario (English Opera Group and Aldeburgh Festival) - Britten's Homes - Trivial Pursuits

John Bridcut is a documentary film-maker for British television. His enthusiasm for English music has been lifelong, and his feature-length films, Britten's Children (2004), The Passions of Vaughan Williams (2008) and Elgar: The Man Behind the Mask (2010), have won awards. His most recent composer-portraits have been The Prince and the Composer (2011), in which HRH The Prince of Wales explored the life and music of Hubert Parry, and Delius: Composer; Lover, Enigma (2012). Other film subjects have included Prince Charles, Rudolf Nureyev, Roald Dahl, Hillary Clinton, Mstislav Rostropovich and the Queen. His book Britten's Children was published in 2006.