Edward Benjamin Britten, OM CH (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other vocal music, orchestral and chamber pieces. His best-known works include the opera Peter Grimes (1945), the War Requiem (1962) and the orchestral showpiece The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (1945). This clip of War Requiem is from London's Southbank Centre in 2014, conducted by Marin Alsop:
Among his honours were the appointment as a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (Britain) in 1953; Commander of the Royal Order of the Polar Star (Sweden) in 1962; the Order of Merit (Britain) in 1965; and a life peerage (Britain) in 1976.
