Britten, Benjamin.

covering the last twenty-five years of his creative life,  including important letters (of up to 9 pages) about the composition of Billy Budd, announcing that E.M. Forster, the librettist of the opera is staying with him, enquiring after Kathleen Ferrier, who is staying with the Diamands, discussing arrangements for the Aldeburgh Festival in 1950, the Spring Symphony (complaining about Eduard van Beinum's imagined problems with performing the work), describing his afflicted right arm which has prevented his performing, the travels of the composer and Pears,  the debacle with the manservant Robinson, the revival of Billy Budd, the recording of The Turn of the Screw, an opera by Kubelik, concert programmes featuring his music and that of Frank Bridge and others, giving a vivid account of having to add a concert in Maribor at the last minute in their tour of Yugoslavia (also with an account by Peter Pears in the same envelope), discussing programming music by Bach with Szymon Goldberg, performances with a galaxy of stars at Edinburgh, the fire at the Maltings and many other matters, c.70 pages, various sizes, Aldeburgh, Birmingham, St Mark's Square Venice ("what a place to have breakfast!" ), and elsewhere, 1949-1976

"...I was astounded by your wire—if the Toonkunst can't learn the Spring Symphony in at least 2½ months, I feel somehow good will is lacking...But really, my dear, 80 voices—even professional ones—won't do, not against that sized orchestra...If we can't find the right size choir we had better cancel, which will be sickening after the rush to get the piece written, & the row with Koussevitzky) [1949]...I shall never forget what Carlo, Kertesz, D F-D, Slava, Galya, not to mention P.P. did for me...I am afraid that you must settle the problem of language for "The Poet's Echo" for the next Festival. It would be hard for Slava and Galina not to perform it, that is if they want to do it themselves..."

Peter Diamand (1913-98) was born in Berlin of Austrian parentage. He was one of the most talented artistic administrators of his generation: General Director of the Holland Festival (1948-65); Director of the Edinburgh International Festival 1965-1978 and Artistic Director of the Orchestre de Paris from 1978 until his death. He was associated with many of the great musicians of his time: he was secretary to Artur Schnabel (later marrying one of his greatest pupils, Maria Curcio, as his first wife) until the second world war, when he spent some time in a Dutch concentration camp and on the run from the Nazis. Afterwards he helped Britten and Pears in their continental engagements and was a firm friend of Kathleen Ferrier and others. His relationship with Marlene Dietrich (see lot 26) seems to be little known.  In the early part of this correspondence, Peter Diamand was Britten and Pears's agent on the continent. None of the letters appears in the Selected Letters, volumes iii & iv.