The inevitable pairing of the names of Britten and Purcell, a pairing promoted by Britten himself, was one in which he was linked to Britain’s ‘only’ composer. In response, Britten willingly took on the mantle of hope for English composition. At the same time, there is no doubt that the Britten felt an affinity with the earlier composer, and drew considerable strength and inspiration from his works. However, although Britten’s response is often presented as a personal one, this article suggests that his engagement with Purcell’s music was part of an earlier and broader picture of the use and reuse of earlier English music in the first decades of the twentieth century. His engagement with Purcell’s music, which included realisations of his songs and the use of forms and techniques associated with the composer, was at its most intense in 1945, and was focused on the period round 21 and 22 November, the dates of the Wigmore Hall concerts which saw the premieres of Britten’s Quartet No. 2 and The Holy Sonnets of John Donne. The reception of Britten’s ‘Purcell’ works was sometimes mixed, but this article concludes that for Britten, it was a matter of supreme enjoyment.

This chapter considers Britten’s unique position in the sometimes unstable history of English opera. While acknowledging his central significance as the composer who (almost) single-handedly revived its fortunes with the instant and phenomenal success of Peter Grimes in 1945, it offers a nuanced assessment that views his achievements as part of a much broader picture in which the genre was arguably never as moribund as traditional accounts (and those perpetuated by Britten himself) might suggest. After surveying the riches of the courtly masque and the stage works of Henry Purcell, Italian baroque opera in London, and the surprisingly healthy state of English-language opera in the nineteenth century, the chapter provides a concise overview of Britten’s steady output of operas post-Grimes and his wider significance as a canny entrepreneur who promoted the genre widely – and indeed internationally – at the helm of the English Opera Group.

The chapter opens with an account of the Golden Jubilee orchestral concert (1933) because the orchestra (made up of former students) is representative of the major orchestral players the College had trained, and Leopold Stokowski, the conductor. Yet this did not seem quite so likely at the end of the First World War. The College was fortunate that Hugh Allen succeeded Parry as Director, because he transformed its prospects through his selection of staff (including Adrian Boult) and revitalizing of its curriculum. Anxious to ensure employment for College students, Allen cooperated with the Teachers’ Registration Council to institute the Graduate diploma (GRSM) in association with the RAM. Allen brought about the Parry Theatre, beginning the RCM’s reputation for opera training. Allen’s liberal regime of allowing students to remain at the College for as long as they wanted helped some initially unpromising students to find themselves and to flourish within the RCM’s unconventional milieu. But Allen saw the RCM as representative of British musicians’ interests and this led to clashes with the BBC. George Dyson and Constant Lambert are discussed as two antipodal figures of Allen's RCM.

The chapter opens with an account of the Golden Jubilee orchestral concert (1933) because the orchestra (made up of former students) is representative of the major orchestral players the College had trained, and Leopold Stokowski, the conductor. Yet this did not seem quite so likely at the end of the First World War. The College was fortunate that Hugh Allen succeeded Parry as Director, because he transformed its prospects through his selection of staff (including Adrian Boult) and revitalizing of its curriculum. Anxious to ensure employment for College students, Allen cooperated with the Teachers’ Registration Council to institute the Graduate diploma (GRSM) in association with the RAM. Allen brought about the Parry Theatre, beginning the RCM’s reputation for opera training. Allen’s liberal regime of allowing students to remain at the College for as long as they wanted helped some initially unpromising students to find themselves and to flourish within the RCM’s unconventional milieu. But Allen saw the RCM as representative of British musicians’ interests and this led to clashes with the BBC. George Dyson and Constant Lambert are discussed as two antipodal figures of Allen's RCM.