Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings, op. 31
Song cycle
The Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, Op. 31, is a song cycle written in 1943 by Benjamin Britten for tenor, solo horn and a string orchestra. Composed during the Second World War at the request of the horn player Dennis Brain, it is a setting of a selection of six poems by English poets on the subject of night, including both its calm and its sinister aspects. The poets Britten chose to set for the Serenade range from an anonymous 15th-century writer to poets from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.
Movements
- Prologue
- Pastoral
- Nocturne
- Elegy
- Dirge
- Hymn
- Sonnet
- Epilogue
Recommended recordings
- Peter Pears, Dennis Brain · Benjamin Britten YouTubeSpotify (subscription)
- Ian Bostridge YouTubeSpotify (subscription)
Most recent recordings
- Britten: Serenade for Tenor, Horn & Strings, Op. 31: III. Nocturne — Benjamin Britten, Laurence Kilsby, Christopher Parkes, Sinfonia Of London, John Wilson (2026) Spotify
- Britten: Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, Op. 31: VI. Hymn — Benjamin Britten, London Choral Sinfonia, Michael Waldron, Annemarie Federle, Nick Pritchard (2026) Spotify
New releases via Spotify — surfaced automatically, not editorial picks.