 In 1947 he suggested to his librettist Eric Crozier that they should create a children's opera, based on a bible story.Crozier gave Britten a copy of Pollard's book, as a possible source of material.Nothing came of this project immediately; instead, Britten and Crozier wrote the cantata "Saint Nicolas" (1948), the first of several works in which Britten combined skilled performers with amateurs.