Kate Kennedy chooses her favourite recording of Britten's Peter Grimes The opera Peter Grimes is set in a fictional small town that bears some resemblance to Britten's home of Aldeburgh, Suffolk, on England's east coast. It is a drama about outsiders and oppression. As Britten himself said, it was "a subject very close to my heart – the struggle of the individual against the masses. The more vicious the society, the more vicious the individual". The score is full of great orchestral descriptions of the Suffolk coast and highly dramatic confrontations.

Britten's Peter Grimes

Building a Library: a guide to the best recordings of the greatest classical music. Each week an expert and enthusiast brings along a  wide range of recordings of a well-known piece. They explore the music and the different ways of performing it, ending with a recommendation for your library

Music

Iain Burnside chooses his favourite recording of Mahler's Kindertotenlieder.

Mahler's Kindertotenlieder

Nigel Simeone chooses his favourite version of Brahms' 3rd Symphony.

Brahms' 3rd Symphony

David Owen Norris chooses his favourite version of Vaughan Williams's Sea Symphony.

Vaughan Williams's Symphony no.1 'A Sea Symphony'.

Elin Manahan Thomas's recommendation for the ultimate recording of Britten's War Requiem.

Britten's Peter Grimes

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