<Li> percussion (2 players): timpani, triangle, cymbals, tambourine, gong, 2 wood blocks, vibraphone, glockenspiel, xylophone, tamburo, snare drum, tenor drum, bass drum, 2 bells </Li> <Li> Other: 2 harps, harpsichord (celesta), strings (minimum: 4.2. 2.2. 2) </Li> <Li> Stage band: sopranino recorders, cymbals, 2 wood blocks </Li> <P> Britten delineated the three tiers of characters, the rustics being given folk - like "simple" music, the lovers a more romantic sound - world and the fairies being represented in a very ethereal way . Almost all of the action now takes place in the woods around Athens, and the fairies inhabit a much more prominent place in the drama . The comic performance by the rustics of Pyramus and Thisbe at the final wedding takes on an added dimension as a parody of nineteenth - century Italian opera . Thisbe's lament, accompanied by obbligato flute, is a parody of a Donizetti "mad scene" ("Il dolce suono"). </P>

Composer of the operas peter grimes a midsummer nights dream and death in venice