Sinfonia da Requiem, Op. 20:
I. Lacrymosa. Andante ben misurato
II. Dies irae. Allegro con fuoco – Alla marcia
III. Requiem aeternam. Andante molto tranquillo

Spring Symphony, Op. 44:
Part I. Introduction. Shine out (chorus)
Part I. The Merry Cuckoo (tenor)
Part I. Spring, the Sweet Spring (soprano, alto, tenor, chorus)
Part I. The Driving Boy (soprano, children’s chorus)
Part I. The Morning Star (chorus)
Part II. Welcome, Maids of Honour (alto)
Part II. Waters above (tenor)
Part II. Out on the Lawn I lie in Bed (alto, chorus)
Part III. When will my May come (tenor)
Part III. Fair and Fair (soprano, tenor)
Part III. Sound the Flute (chorus, children’s chorus)
Part IV. Finale. London, to Thee I do Present (soprano, alto, tenor, chorus, children’s chorus)

The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, Op. 34:
I. Theme. Allegro maestoso e largamente
II. Variations A-D, Woodwinds. Presto – Lento – Moderato – Allegro alla marcia
III. Variations E-H, Strings. Brillante, alla polacca – Meno mosso
– Cominciando lento ma poco a poco accelerando
IV. Variation I, Harp. Maestoso
V. Variations J-L, Brass. L’istesso tempo – Vivace – Allegro pomposo
VI. Variation M, Percussion. Moderato
VII. Fugue. Allegro molto - Animato

Celebrating the work of Benjamin Britten, this album combines three of the composer’s enduringly popular, yet vastly distinctive works. Sir Simon Rattle leads us on an unexpected journey through this diverse collection of masterpieces. Written shortly after the outbreak of World War II, Sinfonia da Requiem meditates in part on the political populism which had, for the second time in just a few decades, plunged the world in to an existential crisis. In this piece, Britten’s rich, yearning harmonies reveal a sombre and dramatic warning of the cost of conflict. From the darkness of war, we move towards the light with Britten’s choral Spring Symphony. With its mysterious reimagining of traditional English folk song and verse, the work depicts the gradual reawakening of the natural world when winter ebbs away, and spring begins to triumph. Britten let his imagination catch fire in The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra. This brilliantly original showpiece is one of the composer’s best-known pieces, and draws the album to a close.