The following is a short extract from a longer interview, the transcript of which will be available for downloading from here after the 28th March.   "George Benjamin, himself celebrating his 40th birthday, talks to Gillian Moore, Artistic Director of the London Sinfonietta, about the influence of Boulez, and about his own musical world. GM What is your estimation of Boulez's influence on music making since the War, both in terms of a purely musical influence, and of an effect on the way we think about music, the way we programme it, the way it is organised? GB The influence is enormous. He is a hugely provocative and dynamic figure who has given a coherent and powerful lead in forging musical language ahead, and in doing justice to progressive 20th century music. This was much neglected when he was young, and he was a pioneer on behalf of the Second Viennese School, Bartok, among others. We take it for granted now, but he raised the levels of performance and therefore the levels of understanding in contemporary music. But in the longer term, it will be for his composing that he is remembered. I still don't think that his music is as widely understood as it should be, but this situation has improved in the last ten years or so. And it has to be admitted that his recent music is more sensual and more immediately attractive to the ear, more viscerally exciting than a lot of earlier music, but I still think there is a long way to go before the larger public is able to digest and really understand the distinctive, unique and poetic world of Boulez's music.

GM Elaborate on what you think these unique, distinctive and poetic qualities are.

GB Firstly, the ear is fabulous - there is none better. And that shows itself in the sense of timbre, the apparently effortless virtuosity in the orchestration, and, most importantly, in the luminosity of his harmonic language. The acute awareness and sensitivity to harmony puts him in a tradition which runs from Debussy through Ravel and Messiaen........"