Michael Tippett was born in London and studied music at the Royal College before embarking on an early career as a composer, supported by work with the orchestra and choir of Morley College in South London, tasks that he found socially relevant. His idiosyncratic style developed relatively slowly, flowering in a series of remarkable operas for which he provided his own libretti. Public recognition came with a knighthood in 1966 and appointment as a Companion of Honour in 1979.

Operas
Tippett’s first important opera, The Midsummer Marriage, was staged at Covent Garden in 1955. It was followed six years later by King Priam, then The Knot Garden in 1970 and The Ice Break in 1977, a...