Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) was one of the 20th century’s greatest opera composers. Born in Suffolk, England, he studied at the Royal College of Music. He fell into the circle of W.H. Auden, and though he left a few years later, he met the tenor Peter Pears, who would become his greatest musical interpreter and his personal partner until Britten’s death. After spending part of the years of World War II in America, he leapt to prominence in 1945 with his opera Peter Grimes. Later successes on the stage included Albert Herring, Billy Budd, The Turn of the Screw, and Death in Venice. He wrote music for other venues as well, and his great successes include the Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings; the Variations on a Theme by Frank Bridge; the Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra; and the War Requiem. Shortly before his death, he became the first composer to be awarded a life peerage by the British crown.