sentences:  In 1930, Marion Scott wrote in Proceedings of the Musical Association that although the contents of his early operas are unquestionably ‘horrific’, their ‘musical brilliance is equally certain, and “Sancta Susanna” is the cleverest of the bunch.’ The article describes him as ‘the acknowledged leader of the “new music”’, and it is in no small part that his provocative early works contributed to such recognition.The opera opens in a convent at night, the protagonist, Susanna, lying in prayer in front of an altar.She is approached by a number of figures, the most prominent of whom is Sister Clementia, who states that Susanna is sick, and ‘scarcely live[s] on this earth any longer’.