Britten composed Curlew River in 1964, but it had a long gestation period which dated back to 1956. It was then that he saw his first Japanese No-drama, a play called Sumidagawa. The No-drama is a type of opera which utilizes reduced forces, sparse theatrical resources, and much chanting and speech-like singing. The No-drama dates back many centuries in the history of Japanese theater, and follows age-old traditions in theatrical presentations. The cast is all-male, even the characters which portray women. They are masked, and communicate their emotions through the mechanical movements of their masks. The unfolding of the drama is slow, and the style of presentation simple to the point of severity. Britten took the story from the No-drama which he witnessed and turned it into what he called a church parable. He Christianized the content of the story as well as the music. His version takes place not in an Oriental setting but on the Curlew River in the Fens of England. He and his librettist William Plomer use medieval traditions of storytelling, a chorus of pilgrims, a church setting, and even a moral at the end. They interweave Latin prayers and chants into the fabric of the work, and monks portray all of the characters. But like the No-drama which he witnessed in Japan, he uses an all male cast and a reduced orchestra with no conductor. Much of the singing is in a speech-like recitative, but filled with vocal effects which are imitated by the instruments. Chant, concerted singing between voices, and lyrical passages and solos provide dramatic contrasts.

The drama is primarily about emotions, and the main character is a Madwoman, who comes in search of her deceased son. She is portrayed by a tenor in pathos-filled passages which reveal her complete emotional desolation. Repeated notes on vowel sounds, portamento slides up and down which do not settle on any pitch but sigh and rise despairingly, and minimalist instrumental accompaniment express a madness which is both personal and poetic. The tenor's vocal tessitura is higher than the rest of the cast, and illustrates her psychological separation from mankind in angular melodic lines which are thin and frail. The praying pilgrims are led by an Abbott and accompanied by a traveler, who joins them in their journey. Their prayers are ponderous chants in Latin, grounded in centuries of spiritual traditions, and contrast sharply with the Madwoman's angular grief.

The end of the opera begins with bell-like sounds from the percussion section which draw all to prayer. They are at the grave sight of the little boy. The entire orchestra, which hitherto has not played all at once, joins the chorus of pilgrims in a huge block of chanting sound. The madwoman's voice is heard far above the rest, separate and anguished, until finally, the spirit of her son joins them in prayer. When her son's spirit finally wishes her soul to be at rest, the Madwoman becomes transfigured, and the Abbott addresses the audience. Britten intended this work to be performed in a church, so that the composition could take advantage of church acoustics and grand, religious spaces. He also is aware in his presentation of the traditions of Medieval miracle and morality plays. The abbot addresses the "congregation" at the end, not an "audience." And after a very poetic presentation of the moral of the parable, the cast ends singing Te lucis ante terminum, the same hymn with which the opera began.

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