In the 16^th and 17^th centuries English musicians had a great reputation in Europe for their talent and for their originality. William Byrd was the most distinguished English composer of this time, and his name is still widely known.

In the centuries that followed England produced such composers of world rank like Purcell in the 17^th and 18^th centuries, and Elgar in the 20^th century.

Today many people believe that the compositions of such contemporary composers like Michael Tippet, Benjamin Britten and William Walton will live on after their deaths. They are performed all over the world.

In the period between July and September a vast audience assembles at the Royal Albert Hall every night at 7 o’clock. (The Royal Albert Hall houses 8.000 people.) The famous Henry Wood Promenade concerts take place there. The BBC broadcasts certain principal works every night throughout the season. The number of English listeners totals 7 million and it is probably equal to the number of listeners abroad.

The Proms started in 1895 when Sir Henry Wood formed the Queen’s Hall Orchestra. The purpose of this venture was to provide classical music to many people.

Henry Purcell (1659-1695) was the founder of British Opera. He composed some operas”The Indian Queen”, "The Fairy Queen”. His opera "King Arthur” was very popular among the common people. It was rather a patriotic one. The main idea of the opera was the struggle for independence of Britain. King Arthur was a national English hero, a fighter against invaders. The great influence of Henry Purcell has been seen today in the works of Benjamin Britten.

Benjamin Britten was an outstanding English composer of our time. He was born in Suffolk in 1913. At the age of 5 he began to play the piano and compose music. He continued to write songs at school where music was his favorite. By the time he was 14 he had written 10 sonatas, 6 string quarters, oratorio, a number of songs and piano pieces.

At 19 Benjamin Britten began to work as a musician for a small film company. But his career as a professional composer began in earnest in 1936. He wrote charming and effective music that could be performed by amateur performers. He loved children and wrote many works for them. They are simple and nice.

During the World War II Benjamin Britten gave many concerts for the British army and went on composing music. He wrote many operas. The most famous is "Peter Grimes”.

Living in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, Britten started in 1948 the annual Aldeburgh Musical festival, a high quality classical music festival still held in the town every June and known for its relatively informal atmosphere.

For his achievements in music Benjamin Britten was awarded the Order of Merit in 1956 and made a life peer in 1976 not long before his death.