Notable British classical music composers of the 19th and 20th centuries include Edward Elgar, famous for Pomp and Circumstance, The Enigma Variations and the Cello Concerto, Ralph Vaughan Williams, author of nine symphonies, The Lark Ascending and Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis and Benjamin Britten, whose opera Peter Grimes and The War Requiem are iconic.

Other significant composers include Gustav Holst, famous for The Planets, William Walton,  for Belshazzar's Feast, Michael Tippett for  A Child of Our Time; and Sir Arthur Bliss for A Colour Symphony and contemporaries Arnold Bax, Herbert Howells, Frank Bridge and Edmund Rubbra 

These composers shaped British classical music with their unique contributions, blending traditional and modern styles. A comprehensive selection of their works is available  in superb recordings on the Lyrita  record label.