The most famous British composer born in the 20th century, Benjamin Britten was prolific in his output. He was to write music in every genre, from opera to simple folk-song settings.

Britten’s catalogue of orchestral works is relatively small but is amongst his best and includes concertos for piano and violin. That for the cello is in the form of a symphony, and is one of five works Britten wrote for Mstislav Rostropovich. This is music of considerable passion and drama, calling for virtuoso soloists.