Twelve Variations

Britten composed this engaging set of Twelve Variations during his first year at the Royal College of Music, London in 1931, shortly before beginning  work on his String Quartet in D Major. Like that quartet, it belongs to the collection of fascinating pieces that were not unearthed and published until much later – in this case 1986, when Murray Perahia performed the Variations at the Aldeburgh Festival.

‘A happy combination of Britten's lyricism with a somewhat Hindemithian neoclassicism...an eminently satisfying traversal of textures and moods, from rugged fanfares to the most delicate melisma, while retaining an engaging, effortless-seeming modesty and sweetness.'

American Record Guide, November/December 1991