A new Benjamin Britten CD featuring GPO Film Unit music is now available to buy

Benjamin Britten: Britten On Film is a new album featuring the first-ever comprehensive collection of film music written by Benjamin Britten. The CD features music that the composer wrote for the GPO Film Unit and other companies in the 1930s.

This album has been released by NMC and it contains music from several GPO films including Coal Face and Night Mail. The recording from Night Mail includes the famous W H Auden poem. Other music on the CD is from The Way To The Sea, Negroes, The King's Stamp and Peace Of Britain.

Simon Russell Beale, who is currently enjoying the role of King Arthur in Monty Python's award-winning Spamalot, narrates the album.

The scores for this recording were specially reconstructed from manuscript and other sources held at the Britten-Pears Library. This work was undertaken by the composers Joseph Phibbs and Lloyd Moore, under the supervision of Colin Matthews, Executive Producer of NMC and Director of the Britten Estate.

This CD echoes the work done by Charles Whiffen which led to the BPMA's own concert 'Forgotten Music from the GPO' at the Royal College of Music in 2005.

This new album is now available to buy directly through NMC and was recently reviewed by The Telegraph as "a fascinating side-light on a great composer in the making."

Podcast

Download the Britten on Film podcast, featuring an interview with Colin Matthews. The podcast lasts 7 minutes 45 seconds, and includes excerpts from the new CD. 

Britten on Film podcast (MP3, 7.3MB)

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