Benjamin Britten’s
Benjamin Britten’s a ceremony of carols is one of the famous and most performed works. This has been evidenced by his large following. He has managed to inspire numerous artists with his compositions and continue to so. His pieces have been sung in choirs, schools, concert halls, festivals, and many others. A ceremony of carols is a collection of inspiring Christmas carols often performed during the Christmas season.
It is based on the medieval carols. I am intrigued by this collection of these carols. The circumstances surrounding this composition seem to be difficult both professionally and personally. Bitten, at the time, had fled to the US following the war of 1939. For the three years, he spent time in Brooklyn, where he met other influential American artists, performers, and writers such as Aaron Copland, Edward hopper, W.H. Auden, amongst others. New York was an exciting experience for young Bitten. These carols carry a lot of meaning as, through it, we see the composer’s struggles. In 1942, Britten was homesick and he decided to go back home. Here he undertook a dangerous journey through the Atlantic Ocean which was infested with dangerous sea creatures using u- boats. In spite of the apparent dangers, Britten kept on composing several prices. A ceremony of carols was the turning point not just for Britten but for all of use the audience. His waste of writing is melodic and entertaining and we are often forced to play his songs during the Christmas festive season
Composed for treble and harp voices, a ceremony of Carols starts with an unaccompanied procession, ‘Hodie Christus Natus est’ before the harp starts joining along with the choir for a sequence of carols which tells the traditional birth of Jesus Christ.
It should be noted that the carols were not meant to be unrelated songs; however, just before the original performance, Britten did add a last carol with the harp interlude. This implied that the carols became an integrated work with the harp offering the opening as well as the closing parts. Britten well on to add boy’s treble voices, which he thought would bring out a child-like innocence he needed to achieve in his arrangement. The results was an exemplary works which can be sang by all generations, both young and old. Britten’s carols not only put you in the Christmas mood, but it makes you fully understand the birth of Christ through melodious sounds. I believe Britten’s works are among the most written pieces of all time. Still, to date, they are the most sung carols of all time. I am intrigued, mainly because these pieces were birthed out of the painful experience. Being in a foreign country can be a scary experience, and everyone can resonate with it. We are so used to our comfort zones, and Britten teaches us that we might need to challenge ourselves. If he had not fled his native country into a foreign land, Britten might not have composed such a remarkable work. We, therefore, might not have experienced the most intriguing pieces of all time. The story behind this piece is as intriguing as the work itself, and that is what makes this work exemplary.