Children's Crusade (Britten)
Children's Crusade | |
---|---|
Ballad for children's voices and orchestra | |
by Save the Children Fund | |
Text | Kinderkreuzzug 1939 by Bertolt Brecht, translated by Hans Keller |
Language | German |
Composed | 1968 | –1969
Dedication | Hans Werner Henze |
Performed | 19 May 1969 |
Published | 1970 |
Scoring |
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Children's Crusade, Op. 82, subtitled a Ballad for children's voices and orchestra[1] is a composition by Benjamin Britten. He completed it in 1969, setting Bertolt Brecht's poem Kinderkreuzzug 1939 for children's choir with some solo parts, keyboard instruments and an array of percussion, to be performed mainly by children. It was first performed in an English version at St Paul's Cathedral in London on 19 May 1969.
History
Benjamin Britten composed several works for performance by children.
Children's Crusade was performed, in an English version,
It was published by Faber Music in 1970,[1][6] dedicated to Hans Werner Henze.[8]
The first performers recorded the work in 1970 for a collection of Britten Rarities, with the Wandsworth School Boys' Choir, among the soloists Adrian Thompson, pianists Ian Cobb and John Clegg, organist Jonathan Smith and six percussionists.[9] The first performance of the German version took place in Braunschweig in 1980 by the children of the Braunschweiger Jugendchor (Brunswick Youth Choir), conducted by Manfred Ehrhorn, followed by the first recording in German a year later. It was reissued in 2012.[5]
In 2002 and 2003, the work was recorded, with other music by Britten for children, by the Choristers of
Theme
The topic is a group of children in Poland during World War II in quest of peace. It was, after Britten's War Requiem, another work inspired by his pacifist convictions, pointing out the "futility of war, witnessed through the eyes of a group of brave Polish children in the face of overwhelming odds",[2] based on Brecht's imagery.[2]
Music
Britten scored the vocal part for a boys' choir with nine solo parts. The orchestra includes a battery of percussion, two pianos and electronic organ or portable organ. The work takes about 19 minutes to perform.[1] The percussion is intended to be played by children with the help of a few adults. The pianos and organ are designed to establish pitch.[2] The work has been regarded as "a bleak pacifist message",[12] and an "utterly serious piece of music, cleverly designed so as to involve as many children as possible in conveying the rather desperate, bleak message of Brecht’s poem".[10]
References
- ^ a b c d "Children's Crusade". Faber. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
- ^ a b c d Spicer, Paul. "The Children's Crusade" (PDF). Britten Choral Guide. Boosey & Hawkes. p. 11. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ Flynn, Angie (July 2006). Benjamin Britten's compositions for children and amateurs: cloaking simplicity behind the veil of sophistication (PDF). National University of Ireland, Maynooth.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-816714-3.
- ^ a b c "Benjamin Britten, Bertolt Brecht: / Children's Crusade / (Libretto in German)". sicus.de. 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- ^ a b Britten, Benjamin (1970). Children's Crusade; a Ballad for Children's Voices and Orchestra, Op. 82 ; Words by Bertolt Brecht. Faber Music.
- ^ "Prom 39 / 19:30 Sun 31 Aug 1969 Royal Albert Hall". BBC. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- ISBN 978-1-84-777690-7.
- ^ Culot, Hubert (March 2004). "Benjamin Britten (1913–1976) / The Rarities / ... Children's Crusade Op. 82". musicweb-international.com. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ a b Culot, Hubert (August 2001). "Benjamin Britten (1913–1976) / The Golden Vanity Op. 78 (1966) / A Ceremony of Carols Op. 28 (1942) / Missa Brevis in D Op. 63 (1959) / Children's Crusade Op. 82". musicweb-international.com. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ "Britten: Children's Crusade & A Ceremony of Carols". prestomusic.com. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-57-129074-1.
External links
- Benjamin Britten: "Children's Crusade", op. 82 (full score), British Library
- Children's Crusade, Britten Thematic Catalogue
- Performance by Cor Vivaldi on YouTube
- "Children's Crusade, Op. 82 (Der Kinderkreuzzug) (text in Italian, English, German, French) antiwarsongs.org
- "Poster Print of Music – Benjamin Britten – Wandsworth School Boys Choir – St. Pauls Cathedral", prints.paimages.co.uk