Best Benjamin Britten Podcasts (2025)

Send us a text Description Erik Satie: The Unlikely Godfather of Les Six in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Satie gave his pieces absurd titles like Three Pieces in the Shape of a Pear—a jab at critics who accused him of lacking musical “form.” Les Six adored this irreverence. Poulenc once said Satie proved that “music could sm…

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Les Six: Paris’s Modern Musical Short-Lived Spark 1:00

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Send us a text Description Les Six: Paris’s Modern Musical Short-Lived Spark in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Les Six officially collaborated on only one major project, L’Album des Six (1920), before drifting apart. Ironically, the brevity of their partnership helped mythologize them: critics kept the label alive long after t…

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Thursday 4th December: An Advent Sequence 35:40

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Thursday 4th December: An Advent Sequence by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Francis Poulenc: The Man and His Music 1:00

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Send us a text Description Francis Poulenc: The Man and His Music in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Poulenc adored Parisian cabarets and often slipped their cheeky harmonic twists into his classical works. After a friend accused him of being “too frivolous,” he replied, “You must take me as I am—Ravel for breakfast and a good …

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Thursday 27th November: The Lamb: William Blake 33:31

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Thursday 27th November: The Lamb: William Blake by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Echoes Along the Nile: Music in Ancient Egypt 1:00

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Send us a text Description Echoes Along the Nile: Music in Ancient Egypt in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact The sistrum—a sacred rattle associated with the goddess Hathor—was believed to ward off evil spirits. Priests shook it during ceremonies to “awaken” the gods. Archaeologists have found beautifully ornamented versions made…

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The Musician’s Life in the Romantic Era 1:00

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Send us a text Description The Musician’s Life in the Romantic Era in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Franz Liszt was the 19th-century equivalent of a rock star. Fans reportedly fought over his discarded gloves and hair strands, a frenzy dubbed Lisztomania. While his performances caused swooning in concert halls, his income oft…

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Thursday 13th November: World Kindness Day 33:22

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Thursday 13th November: World Kindness Day by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Mozart’s Piano: The Enlightenment’s Favourite Sound Machine 1:00

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Send us a text Description Mozart’s Piano: The Enlightenment’s Favourite Sound Machine in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Mozart loved his personal fortepiano so much he took it on tour. It still survives today in Salzburg. Unlike modern pianos, its keys are wood-topped, not ivory, and its sound is surprisingly intimate—more li…

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Thursday 6th November: Fire! 38:45

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Thursday 6th November: Fire! by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Harmony Behind Stone Walls: Life in the Medieval Cloister 1:00

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Send us a text Description Harmony Behind Stone Walls: Life in the Medieval Cloister in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact The earliest Western musical notation emerged in monasteries, where scribes invented “neumes”—tiny marks above text to guide singers. This humble invention paved the way for modern sheet music. So, the next ti…

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Thursday 30th October: Songs of Farewell 36:05

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Thursday 30th October: Songs of Farewell by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Benjamin Britten’s The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra: A Musical Who’s Who 1:00

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Send us a text Description Benjamin Britten’s The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra: A Musical Who’s Who in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact When The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra premiered, Britten wasn’t sure audiences would take it seriously. He needn’t have worried—it’s now one of the most-performed orchestral wo…

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Thursday 23rd October: The Word of the Lord 39:54

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Thursday 23rd October: The Word of the Lord by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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The Pulse Redefined: Rhythmic Complexity in 20th-Century Music 1:00

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Send us a text Description The Pulse Redefined: Rhythmic Complexity in 20th-Century Music in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact When The Rite of Spring premiered in Paris, 1913, its jarring rhythms helped cause a near riot. Audience members shouted, booed, and even fought. A century later, the same rhythms are considered masterpie…

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Thursday 16th October: Make a joyful noise 35:37

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Thursday 16th October: Make a joyful noise by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Breaking the Spell: Reaction Against Romanticism in Early 20th-Century Music 1:00

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Send us a text Description Breaking the Spell: Reaction Against Romanticism in Early 20th-Century Music” in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact When Stravinsky’s Pulcinella premiered in 1920, audiences were puzzled—was it parody, homage, or rebellion? Stravinsky called it “a look backward with a smile,” summing up the entire neocla…

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Thursday 9th October: The Beasts of the Earth 39:16

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Thursday 9th October: The Beasts of the Earth by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Mozart in Miniature: Master of Chamber Music 1:00

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Send us a text Description Mozart in Miniature: Master of Chamber Music in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Mozart’s publisher worried that his Piano Quartet in G minor (1785) was too difficult for amateurs—the intended market for chamber music. Sales flopped at first, but the piece later became a cornerstone of the repertoire. …

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Thursday 2nd October: The Song of Harvest 33:34

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Thursday 2nd October: The Song of Harvest by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Thursday 25th September: St Michael and All Angels 36:27

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Thursday 25th September: St Michael and All Angels by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Form, Function, and Flourish: The Classical Sonata 1:00

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Send us a text Description Form, Function, and Flourish: The Classical Sonata in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Beethoven’s “Moonlight” Sonata wasn’t named by him at all—the nickname came years later, when a critic compared its first movement to moonlight on Lake Lucerne. Beethoven might have rolled his eyes, but the title stu…

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Back to the Future: Neoclassicism in Music 1:00

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Send us a text Description Back to the Future: Neoclassicism in Music in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Stravinsky admitted that Pulcinella wasn’t just homage—it was liberation. “It was a backward look, of course,” he said, “but it was a look in the mirror too.” By reworking 18th-century melodies with his own twists, he essent…

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Thursday 18th September: Turn Back O Man: Gustav Holst 37:44

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Thursday 18th September: Turn Back O Man: Gustav Holst by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Faraway Fantasies: Exoticism in Opera 1:00

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Send us a text Description Faraway Fantasies: Exoticism in Opera in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact When Carmen premiered, critics complained it was too scandalous and “vulgar” for the Paris stage. Yet the opera’s Spanish flair and exotic energy soon captivated Europe. Ironically, Bizet never visited Spain—the rhythms and melod…

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Thursday 4th September: A Celebration of Anton Bruckner 35:01

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Thursday 4th September: A Celebration of Anton Bruckner by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Showtime with Strings Attached: The Romantic Concerto 1:00

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Send us a text Description Showtime with Strings Attached: The Romantic Concerto in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Franz Liszt’s piano concertos were so demanding that critics sometimes accused him of showing off. He didn’t mind—he once said performing should “transport the listener.” Paganini caused similar uproar: audiences …

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Bigger, Louder, Wilder: The Romantic Orchestra Arrives 1:00

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Send us a text Description Bigger, Louder, Wilder: The Romantic Orchestra Arrives in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Wagner was so ambitious he built his own opera house in Bayreuth just to fit the expanded orchestra he envisioned. His pit design hid the musicians from the audience—so all you saw was drama on stage while an eno…

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Thursday 22nd August: And I Saw a New Heaven 38:58

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Thursday 22nd August: And I Saw a New Heaven by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Berlioz & the Program Symphony: When Music Told the Whole Story 1:00

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Send us a text Description Berlioz & the Program Symphony: When Music Told the Whole Story in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Berlioz claimed Symphonie fantastique was inspired by his infatuation with Irish actress Harriet Smithson, whom he later married—briefly. She didn’t attend the premiere, but when she finally heard it, sh…

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Small Rooms, Big Genius: Mozart’s Chamber Music 1:00

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Send us a text Description Small Rooms, Big Genius: Mozart’s Chamber Music in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet was written for his friend Anton Stadler, whose extended-range clarinet could play lower notes than normal. Mozart adored the instrument’s warm tone—so much so that he later wrote his famous Cl…

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Thursday 14th August: The Assumption of Mary 32:36

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Thursday 14th August: The Assumption of Mary by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Thursday 7th August: Transfiguration 34:40

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Thursday 7th August: Transfiguration by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Lutes, Lyrics, and Life on the Road: Meet the Medieval Minstrels 1:00

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Send us a text Description Lutes, Lyrics, and Life on the Road: Meet the Medieval Minstrels in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Minstrels had to pass on their songs by memory, since music printing wouldn’t arrive until the 15th century. That meant performances changed over time—sometimes intentionally, sometimes forgetfully. A t…

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If the Music Fits, Sing It: The Art of Word Painting 1:00

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Send us a text Description If the Music Fits, Sing It: The Art of Word Painting in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact In Weelkes’ madrigal "As Vesta Was from Latmos Hill Descending", the word “descending” is literally sung with downward scales—meanwhile, “ascending” climbs right back up. Even “running down” gets a rapid, breathles…

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Thursday 24th July: International Moon Day 35:34

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Thursday 24th July: International Moon Day by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Notes on Repeat: How the Printing Press Changed Music Forever 1:00

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Send us a text Description Notes on Repeat: How the Printing Press Changed Music Forever in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Petrucci’s music prints were so beautifully done that people treated them like prized books. His triple-impression method printed staves, then notes, then text—a slow process, but incredibly precise. Later…

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Thursday 17th July: Sea Sunday 32:53

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Thursday 17th July: Sea Sunday by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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When One Voice Became Many: The Rise of Polyphony 1:00

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Send us a text Description When One Voice Became Many: The Rise of Polyphony in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact In early polyphonic music, singers didn’t always have rhythm notated. They had to feel their way through the parts. Imagine performing complex interwoven melodies… by ear! It wasn’t until the 13th century that rhythmi…

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Thursday 10th July: Joy 33:12

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Thursday 10th July: Joy by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Opera à la Carte: Rossini, Risotto, and the Birth of a Beloved Aria 1:00

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Send us a text Description Opera à la Carte: Rossini, Risotto, and the Birth of a Beloved Aria in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Rossini retired from composing operas at just 37, choosing to focus on fine food and entertaining. He invented or inspired several gourmet dishes—like Tournedos Rossini, topped with foie gras and tru…

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Thursday 3rd July: American Independence Day 37:41

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Thursday 3rd July: American Independence Day by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Knock Knock... It’s Fate: The Four Notes That Shook the World 1:00

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Send us a text Description Knock Knock... It’s Fate: The Four Notes That Shook the World in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact During WWII, Allied radio broadcasts began with the da-da-da-DUM motif because its rhythm matched the Morse code for “V” (•••–), symbolizing “Victory.” Beethoven’s Fifth thus became a sonic emblem of resis…

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Thursday 26th June: Vocation 40:08

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Thursday 26th June: Vocation by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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When a Cello Speaks: The Heartbreaking Opening of Elgar’s Concerto 1:00

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Send us a text Description When a Cello Speaks: The Heartbreaking Opening of Elgar’s Concerto in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Elgar’s Cello Concerto premiered in 1919—and flopped. Overshadowed by rehearsal mishaps, it wasn’t until Jacqueline du Pré’s 1965 recording that the piece gained fame. Today, its opening bars are cons…

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Thursday 19th June: Corpus Christi 33:18

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Thursday 19th June: Corpus Christi by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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That Note from Heaven: The Top C in Allegri’s Miserere 1:00

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Send us a text Description That Note from Heaven: The Top C in Allegri’s Miserere in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact The Vatican once banned copying Miserere, enforcing secrecy to protect its mystique. Young Mozart heard it once in 1770 and wrote it out entirely from memory. This musical jailbreak helped make the soaring top C …

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Thursday 12th June: Come Holy Spirit 36:29

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Thursday 12th June: Come Holy Spirit by St Martin's VoicesBy St Martin's Voices

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Lip Gymnastics: The Wild World of Horn Embouchure 1:00

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Send us a text Description Lip Gymnastics: The Wild World of Horn Embouchure in 60 Seconds. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Horn players often practice just buzzing their lips into a mouthpiece—no horn needed—while driving, walking, or even watching TV! __________________________________________________________________ About Steven, Host S…