Year
1992
Distributor
Kino
Country
US
Video Standard
NTSC
OCLC
1325552110
Language
ENG
Three documentaries incorporating music by Benjamin Britten, and one with music by Arthur Benjamin (who was Britten's piano teacher). Coal face (1936): Shows the lives and work of British coal miners. Night mail (1947): Shows the process of delivery via the Postal Special, a mail train. Instruments of the orchestra (1947): The London Symphony performs Britten's Variations and fugue on a theme of Purcell (or A young person's guide to the orchestra) with voice-over narration explaining the nature and role of each instrument. Steps of the ballet (1948): Follows the process of the creation, production and performance of a ballet
The early British documentary films Coal Face heroized miners, while Night Mail heroized postal workers. Both films depicted industrial and communication activities that were central to Britain's role as an imperial power in the 1930's. Instruments of the Orchestra and Steps of the Ballet examine artistic, rather than industrial, practices. The latter shows Britten working on a ballet with the Sadler's Wells Company and concludes with its performance
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