Many of these valuable and practical editions are collected in the two volumes of the Julian Bream Guitar Library, published in 1981. In the realm of print publications, Bream was Editor of the Faber Music Guitar Series, arranging and editing works by the likes of Cimarosa, Boccherini, William Lawes, Purcell, Debussy and Schumann. In addition to important works by Walton, Tippett and Henze, the list of works commissioned by Bream included several other Faber Music works, such as Malcolm Arnold’s Fantasy for solo guitar and Humphrey Searle’s Five. The Nocturnal also encouraged many other eminent composers to write for Bream, helping effect a renaissance in the guitar repertoire. It was such a responsibility – to Ben, to myself, and to the guitar’, Bream recalled to the Guardian. I went to Robert Graves's house in Majorca and there, in the middle of an olive grove, he had a shepherd's hut where I retreated for 10 days to practise the Nocturnal. "The Nocturnal was very nearly beyond me. Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) 1963 Reflections on Come, heavy Sleep first performed on 12 June 1964 by Julian Bream at. It was the Nocturnal that made Bream's name and compelled sceptics to take the instrument seriously in Britain.
#Benjamin britten nocturnal after john dowland full
Like Britten’s earlier Lachrymae, this enigmatic work unfolds in reverse variation form, with the full Dowland theme being explored from multiple perspectives and in many different idioms before being fully revealed at the end. Having already composed his Songs from the Chinese for Bream to perform with Peter Pears in 1957, Britten composed the Nocturnal in 1963 and it was premiered at the 1964 Aldeburgh Festival. Crowning all of these is Benjamin Britten’s 1963 Nocturnal after John Dowland, a set of variations on the lute song ‘Come, Heavy Sleep’ which was the very first work to be published by Faber Music.
Few soloists have had such a defining effect on the repertoire of a solo instrument as Bream, whose vision and discerning tastes led to the creation of many masterpieces. Faber Music has enjoyed a close association with Bream since the 1960s, when he premiered Benjamin Britten’s Nocturnal, and went on to publish many collections of Breams’ editions and arrangements. One of the foremost guitarists and lutenists of the 20 th century, Julian Bream died last week at the age of 87.