Simple Symphony for String Orchestra, Op. 4
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)

[1933-34]

Benjamin Britten was a true musical prodigy who composed prolifically as a child and excelled at piano and viola. In 1927, his viola teacher introduced him to the composer Frank Bridge, who agreed to give Britten private lessons. Britten lost some of his youthful swagger working with Bridge—he later wrote, “I, who thought I was already on the verge of immortality, saw my illusions shattered”—but he emerged from the lessons with new rigor and technique to match his natural inventiveness.

Britten’s Simple Symphony from 1934 recycled a number of themes he had sketched out between the ages of nine and twelve, contributing to the charming innocence of this string symphony steeped in Baroque and Classical conventions. The first movement, Boisterous Bourrée, adapts the brisk tempo and phrasing of that French dance, while Playful Pizzicato aptly describes this all-plucked, scherzo-like romp. The slow and stately pace of the Sentimental Saraband again updates a time-honored French dance. In the Frolicsome Finale, drawn-out crescendos and colorful contrasts hark back to the rollicking rondos of Haydn and Mozart.

Strings