Britten Thematic Catalogue

Beta Version

BTC1027 SPRING SYMPHONY

For soprano, contralto and tenor solos, chorus, boys' choir and orchestra, op. 44
Period of composition: Oct 1948 - Jun 1949
First performance: 14 Jul 1949 >>
Type of performance: Concert performance
Location: Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, Holland Festival
Performance details:

Jo Vincent sop, Kathleen Ferrier contr, Peter Pears ten, Boys' Choir of St Willibrorduskerk, Rotterdam, Dutch Radio Chorus, Concertgebouw Orchestra, Eduard van Beinum cond

Genre: Choral
Text: See individual movements
Performing forces:

Orchestra: 3 fl (III=picc and alto fl), 2 ob, ca, 2 cl in B flat, bass cl, 2 bn, dbn - 4 hn, 3 tpt in C, 3 trbn, tuba, cow-horn - timp, 4 perc (sd, td, tamb, cymb, bd, gong, bells in A, B flat, wb, xyl, castanets, vibr) - 2 harps - str

Duration: 45'
Dedication: 'For Serge Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra'

Notes

Britten had begun thinking about the work as early as 1946, and initially intended using (and selected) a series of medieval Latin texts. The final movement quotes the leading melody and text of Sumer is icumen in, the thirteenth-century Reading Rota.

Movements

All content copyright (C) Britten-Pears Foundation 2012 unless stated. Please note all BTC numbers are provisional at this stage.