The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra

Over the past few weeks, most grade levels have had a chance to use the Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. Here are some other facts:

-This piece was written in 1946. It was for a documentary about the orchestra for children.

-There is an introduction which features each family of instruments by themselves.

-There are 13 variations. Each variation features a instrument by itself.

-The composer, Benjamin Britten, was from England. He enjoyed playing Ragtime music. He wanted to be a farmer, but did not have enough money to start farming, so he became a dentist.

-Britten wrote music for movies, Operas, and for the radio. Remember, there was no television for most of his lifetime.  

You can listen to the piece by section here:
Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra

Question: How would Britten have known about Ragtime music if he was living in England?

Benjamin Britten