Britten: Look! Through the port comes the moonshine astray (from Billy Budd) (Billy in the Darbies)

A glittering selection of operatic highlights and arias, featuring great composers and artists who are all celebrating significant anniversaries in 2013.

The Swedish baritone Peter Mattei has made a formidable reputation for himself performing at the most prestigious opera houses in the world including the Metropolitan, Teatro alla Scala and Covent Garden.

In the recording studio he is, however, a more rarely seen guest. On this his first and long-awaited disc of arias, he revels in the rich opportunities offered by the baritone literature, performing a selection of his favourite arias and roles. Lovelorn young men and cynical libertines, friends faithful unto death and innocent victims of oppression.

All of these are brought to life as one of today’s finest operatic baritones displays his entire range with the eminent support of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and Lawrence Renes on the podium.

Since his death in 1976 many musicians have looked at Benjamin Britten’s scores anew – not simply the repertory Britten never recorded, but the many canonic works he put on tape in the space of only twenty years. Indeed, this set – featuring a wealth of legendary artists such as Sir Simon Rattle, Stephen Hough, Leif Ove Andsnes, Richard Hickox, Ian Bostridge, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Felicity Lott, Angelika Kirchschlager, Bernard Haitink and the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge – brings together some of the finest performances of Britten’s music in recent times. It is newer recordings such as these that testify to the profound impact Britten had on the music of the 20th century, which continues in the 21st.