Table of Contents

List of Illustrations and Tables
List of Abbreviations
Preface
Introduction
1: Carrying Music to the Masses
2: Britten and the BBC
3: The Impresario and the English Opera Group
4: The Arts Council's Pursuit of 'Grand Opera'
5: Aldeburgh's Court Composer
6: Recording a Reputation
Bibliography
Index

About the Author

Dr Kildea was and Undergraduate and Post-graduate student at the University of Melbourne, studying with Max Cooke (piano) and Malcolm Gillies (musicology). He was a recipient of a number of University prizes. Scholarships enabled him to study at Oxford with Cyril Ehrlich. He accepted positions with Opera Australia as its Young Artist Programme as conductor. Made his début with Janaçek's The Cunning Little Vixen. He combines his work for
the Britten Estate and Aldeburgh Productions with a conducting career. He will conduct La Bohème in Melbourne this year.

Reviews

Paul Kildea's Selling Britten offers a new approach to understanding the composer. It moves beyond musicological or even quasi-biographical analysis of the oeuvre to study the hard realities of markets and financial constraints. Ian Bostridge, Times Literary Supplement The book is an indispensable addition to the Britten bibliography. It is scrupulously annotated abd handsomely produced. s ... likely to exercise a seminal influence upon our critical understanding of Britten. Musical Times What is so admirable about Kildea's work is that while his account is obviously intrinsic to a deeper understanding of Britten's creative context, his treatment - characterised both by its trenchancy and deftness - firmly engages with the music. Musical Times ... a valuable social history that is distinguished not only by the acute observation and analysis it brings to bear on the institutionalisation and commodification of music in late-twentieth-century Britain but an essential sympathy for the art it is treating. Musical Times Selling Britten is a fascinating and vigorously written read. Musical Times ... frequently fascinating book. Times Higher Education Supplement