Benjamin Britten occupies an unrivalled position in English music of the twentieth century and a place of the greatest importance in the wider musical world. The earliest of the works included on this disc is the powerful and moving Sinfonia da Requiem, a memorial to the composer’s parents and to the victims of war in Europe. The Sea Interludes (Dawn, Sunday Morning, Moonlight and Storm) and Passacaglia from Britten’s first ‘grand’ opera Peter Grimes are a superb evocation of the Suffolk coast. The Symphonic Suite from the opera Gloriana paints a vivid picture of Elizabethan England.