Brian James Large was born on Feb. 16, 1937, in London, the only child of John James Large, a violinist in a popular dance band, and Ruby (Willis) Large, a pianist who gave lessons to help support the family. The family’s home was destroyed during the Blitz and Mr. Large, like many young Londoners, was sent to the country for the remainder of World War II.
He studied piano and composition at the Royal Academy of Music, graduating in 1959, and received a bachelor’s in music in 1960 and a Ph.D. in 1964, both from the University of London, and taught at the Strand School.
In 1965, Mr. Large joined the BBC’s nascent culture channel, BBC Two, and was soon devoting himself to film. He became chief opera producer in 1970, the same year he directed the world premiere of Benjamin Britten’s “Owen Wingrave,” which the BBC had commissioned for television.
A specialist in Czech music, Mr. Large was the author of well-received biographies of the composers Bedrich Smetana and Bohuslav Martinu.
After leaving the BBC in 1980 to become a freelance director, he focused on the Met, but also directed filmed opera at companies around the world.
He is survived by his husband, Jack Mastroianni, a longtime manager of singers.
“It comes down to one thing: telling a story,” Mr. Large said to Operawire. “The director has a story to tell, and it’s my job to tell that story as best I can in technical means, to make the story clear — to make the underpinning of character, reaction and motive clear.”
