Benjamin Britten
From Philosopedia
Britten, Benjamin [Baron Britten of Aldeburgh] (22 Nov 1913 – 4 Dec 1976)
An eminent English composer, said by some to be the greatest since Purcell, Britten wrote A Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra (1945) and War Requiem (1962). His operas include Peter Grimes (1945), The Turn of the Screw (1954), and Death in Venice (1973).
In 1976, he was named a life peer. According to David Tribe, Britten was a non-believer.
His Billy Budd was clearly homoerotic, and Britten did not try to conceal his homosexuality. Britten’s gay lover for over forty years was the British tenor Peter Pears, for whom he wrote most of his solo vocal works and all of his major tenor roles. The two are buried side by side in Aldeburgh, England, which is the site of a music school the two founded in 1947.
