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Samuel Barber, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1944
Samuel Barber, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1944

Samuel Osborne Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. Carl Van Vechten ( June 17, 1880 &ndash December 21, 1964) was an American Writer and Photographer who was a Events 590 - Bahram Chobin is crowned as king Barham VI of Persia. Year 1910 ( MCMX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Events 393 - Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaims his nine year old son Honorius co-emperor Year 1981 ( MCMLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 A composer (literally meaning 'one who puts together' is a person who creates Music, usually in the medium of notation, for Interpretation and Performance An orchestra is an instrumental ensemble, usually fairly large with string brass woodwind sections and possibly a percussion section as well Opera is an art form in which Singers and Musicians perform a Dramatic work (called an opera which combines a text (called a Libretto For the musical composition see Chorale. A choir, chorale, or chorus is a Musical ensemble of Singers The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers His Adagio for Strings became his most famous composition and is widely considered a masterwork of modern classical music. "Adagio for Strings" is a work for String orchestra, arranged by the American Composer Samuel Barber from his first string quartet

Contents

Biography

Early years

Barber was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, the son of Marguerite McLeod (née Beatty) and Samuel LeRoy Barber. The Borough of West Chester is the County seat of Chester County Pennsylvania, United States. [1] At a very early age, Barber became profoundly interested in music, and it was apparent that he had great musical talent and ability. At the age of nine he wrote to his mother:

“ Dear Mother: I have written to tell you my worrying secret. Now don’t cry when you read it because it is neither yours nor my fault. I suppose I will have to tell it now, without any nonsense. To begin with I was not meant to be an athlete. I was meant to be a composer, and will be I’m sure. I’ll ask you one more thing . —Don’t ask me to try to forget this unpleasant thing and go play football. —Please—Sometimes I’ve been worrying about this so much that it makes me mad (not very). ”

He wrote his first musical composition at the early age of 7 and attempted to write his first opera at the age of 10. He was an organist at the age of 12. When he was 14, he entered the Curtis Institute, a conservatory where he studied piano, composition, and voice. The Curtis Institute of Music is a conservatory in Philadelphia Pennsylvania that offers courses of study leading to a performance Diploma Bachelor of Music

Barber was born into a comfortable, educated, social, and distinguished Irish-American family. His father was a doctor, and his mother was a pianist. His aunt, Louise Homer, was a leading contralto at the Metropolitan Opera and his uncle, Sidney Homer, was a composer of American art songs. Louise Homer ( 30 April, 1871 - 6 May, 1947) was a United States Operatic Contralto. This article is related to a series of articles under the main article Voice type. Sidney Homer ( 9 December[[ 864]] - 1953 was a classical Composer, primarily of songs Louise Homer is noted to have influenced Barber's interest in voice. Through his aunt, Barber had access to many great singers and songs. This background is further reflected in that Barber decided to study voice at the Curtis Conservatory.

Barber began composing seriously in his late teenage years. Around the same time, he met fellow Curtis schoolmate Gian Carlo Menotti, and the two would form a lifelong personal and professional relationship. At the Curtis Institute, Barber was a triple prodigy of composition, voice, and piano. He soon became a favorite of the conservatory's founder, Mary Louise Bok. It was through Bok that Barber would be introduced to his one and only publisher, the Schirmer family. At the age of 18, Barber won a prize from Columbia University for his Violin Sonata (now lost or destroyed by the composer). Columbia University is a private University in the United States and a member of the Ivy League. A violin sonata is a musical composition for solo Violin, which is nearly always accompanied by a Piano or other keyboard instrument or by Figured bass

Mid years

From his early to late twenties, Barber wrote a flurry of successful compositions, launching him into the spotlight of the classical music community. Many of his compositions were commissioned or first performed by such famous artists as Vladimir Horowitz, Eleanor Steber, Raya Garbousova, John Browning, Leontyne Price, Pierre Bernac, Francis Poulenc, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. In Art, a commission is the hiring and payment for the creation of a piece often on behalf of another Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (ולדימיר הורוביץ Владимир Самойлович Горовиц Vladimir Samojlovič Gorovits; Володимир Самійлович WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Eleanor Steber ( 17 July 1914, Wheeling West Virginia - Raya Garbousova ( Russian: Ра́я Га́рбузова 25 September 1909, Tbilisi, Georgia Russian Empire - January 28 John Moses Browning ( January 21 or January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) born in Ogden Utah, was an American Mary Violet Leontyne Price (born February 10, 1927) is an American Opera singer ( Soprano) Pierre Bernac (born as Pierre Bertin on 12 January, 1899 in Paris - died 17 October, 1979 in Villeneuve-les-Avignon) was See also, Rhône-Poulenc Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (fʀɑ̃sis ʒɑ̃ maʀsɛl pulɛ̃k January 7, 1899 – January 30, The German Baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (born 28 May 1925 is a German singer and conductor of Classical music, one of the most famous At the young age of 28, Barber's Adagio for Strings was performed by the NBC Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Arturo Toscanini in 1938, along with his first essay for orchestra. "Adagio for Strings" is a work for String orchestra, arranged by the American Composer Samuel Barber from his first string quartet The NBC Symphony Orchestra was a Radio orchestra established by David Sarnoff of the National Broadcasting Company especially for conductor Arturo WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Arturo Toscanini (ɑrˈturɔ ˌtɔskɑˈnini (March 25 1867 &ndash January The Adagio had been arranged from the slow movement of Barber's string quartet op. 11. Toscanini had only very rarely performed music by American composers before (an exception was Howard Hanson's Second Symphony, which he conducted in 1933). Howard Harold Hanson ( October 28, 1896 &ndash February 26, 1981) was an American Composer, conductor, educator [2] At the end of the first rehearsal of the piece, Toscanini remarked: "Semplice e bella" ("simple and beautiful").

Barber served in the Army Air Corps in World War II, where he was commissioned to write his Second Symphony, a work he later suppressed (which was resurrected in a Vox recording by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andrew Schenck). The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC was the predecessor of the U The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra ( NZSO) is the national orchestra of New Zealand. Composed in 1943, the symphony was originally titled Symphony Dedicated to the Air Forces and was premiered in early 1944 by Serge Koussevitsky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes -->Dr The Boston Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based at Symphony Hall in Boston Massachusetts, USA He revised the symphony in 1947, then decided to destroy the score in 1964. It was reconstructed from the instrumental parts. [3]

Barber would go on to win a prize in 1963 for his Concerto for Piano and Orchestra.

Later years

Barber spent many years in isolation (eventually diagnosed with clinical depression) after the harsh rejection of his third opera Antony and Cleopatra (which he believed contained some of his best music. "This was supposed to have been my opera!" he said). The opera was written for and premiered at the opening of the new Metropolitan Opera House on 16 September 1966. The Metropolitan Opera Association of New York City, founded in April 1880 is a major presenter of all types of opera including Grand Opera. After this setback, Barber continued to write music until he was almost 70 years old. Barber’s music in his later years would be lauded as reflective, contemplative, but without the morbidity or unhappiness of other composers who knew they had a limited time to live. The Third Essay for Orchestra (1978) was his last major work and critics received it as having all the vigor and imagination of his earlier works.

Barber died of cancer in 1981 in New York City at the age of 71. He was buried in Oaklands Cemetery in his hometown of West Chester, Pennyslvania. [4]

Achievements and awards

Barber was president of the International Music Council of UNESCO, where he did much to bring into focus and ameliorate the conditions of international musical problems. United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on November 16 He was also one of the first American composers to visit Russia (which was then a constituent republic of the Soviet Union). Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Constituent country is a phrase used often by official institutions in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity or grouping A republic is a State or Country that is not led by a hereditary Monarch, but in which the people (or at least a part of its people have impact on its The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Barber was also influential in the successful campaign of composers against ASCAP, helping composers increase the share of royalties they receive from their compositions. The American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers ( ASCAP) is a non-profit Performance rights organization that protects its Royalties (sometimes running royalties) are usage-based payments made by one party (the "licensee" to another (the "licensor" for ongoing use of an Barber was the recipient of numerous awards and prizes including the Rome Prize (the American version of the Prix de Rome), two Pulitzers, and election to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The Rome Prize is a prestigious American award made annually through a national competition to 15 emerging artists (working in Architecture Landscape Architecture Design This article concerns the French government prize For similarly named prizes aimed at other countries' nationals see Prix de Rome (disambiguation. The Pulitzer Prize, ˈpʊlɨtsɚ PULL-it-sər is an American award regarded as the highest national honor in Newspaper journalism, The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 250-member organization whose goal is to "foster assist and sustain excellence" in American Literature,

Music

Orchestral music

Barber intensely played and studied the music of J.S. Bach. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" He also was an adherent of Brahms, from whom he learned how to compress profound emotions into small modules of highly charged musical expression (Cello Sonata, 1932). Johannes Brahms ( pronounced ˈbʁaːms (May 7 1833 &ndash April 3 1897 was a German Composer The Cello Sonata opus 6 by Samuel Barber is a sonata for Cello and Piano. In 1933, after reading the poem "Prometheus Unbound" by Percy Bysshe Shelley, Barber composed the tone poem Music for a Scene from Shelley. Percy Bysshe Shelley (August 4 1792 – July 8 1822 ˈpɝːsɪ ˈbɪʃ ˈʃɛlɪ was one of the major English Romantic poets and is widely considered to be among A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of Orchestral Music in one movement in which some extramusical program provides a narrative or illustrative element In 1935, the work was premiered at Carnegie Hall, and this was the first time the composer heard one of his orchestral works performed publicly. Barber’s compositional style has been lauded for its musical logic, sense of architectural design, effortless melodic gift, and direct emotional appeal as in Overture to The School for Scandal (1931) and Music for a Scene from Shelley (1933). Samuel Barber 's Overture to The School for Scandal, Op 5 was the composer's first composition for full orchestra These characteristics remained in his music throughout his lifetime.

Through the success of his Overture to The School for Scandal (1931), Music for a Scene from Shelley (1933), Adagio for Strings (1938); (First) Symphony in One Movement (1936), (First) Essay for Orchestra (1937) and Violin Concerto (1939), Barber garnered performances by the world’s leading conductors — Eugene Ormandy, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Bruno Walter, Charles Münch, George Szell, Artur Rodzinski, Leopold Stokowski, and Thomas Schippers. Samuel Barber 's Overture to The School for Scandal, Op 5 was the composer's first composition for full orchestra "Adagio for Strings" is a work for String orchestra, arranged by the American Composer Samuel Barber from his first string quartet Samuel Barber 's Symphony in One Movement ( op. 9 was completed 24 February 1936. Samuel Barber 's Essay for Orchestra ( op. 12 completed in the first half of 1938, is an orchestral work in one movement Samuel Barber ' s Violin concerto, Op 14 is a work in three movements lasting about 22 minutes and was completed in 1939 WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Eugene Ormandy ( November 18, 1899 &ndash March Dimitris Mitropoulos (Δημήτρης Μητρόπουλος ( &ndash November 2, 1960) known in the West as Dimitri Mitropoulos WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Bruno Walter ( September 15, 1876 &ndash February WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Charles Münch (September 26 1891 &ndash November 6 1968 was an WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> George Szell (ˈsɛl ( June 7, 1897 &ndash July Artur Rodziński ( January 1, 1892 &ndash November 27, 1958) was a Polish conductor. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Leopold Stokowski (born Leopold Anthony Stokowski though on occasion WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Thomas Schippers ( 9 March 1930 &ndash 16 December

His compositions would later include characteristics of polytonality (Second Symphony, 1944), atonality (Medea, 1946; Prayers of Kierkegaard, 1954), Twelve-tone technique (Nocturne, 1959 and the Piano Sonata, 1949), and even jazz (Excursions, 1944; A Hand of Bridge, 1959). The Musical use of more than one key simultaneously is polytonality. Atonality in its broadest sense describes Music that lacks a tonal center, or key. Medea's Dance of Vengeance is a composition (Opus 23a by the American composer Samuel Barber derived from his Prayers of Kierkegaard was written between 1942 and 1954 by Samuel Barber. Twelve-tone technique (also dodecaphony, especially in British usage twelve-note composition) is a method of musical composition devised by Arnold Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States A Hand of Bridge, opus 35 is an Opera composed by Samuel Barber with Libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti, is possibly the shortest opera Although not pathbreaking, Barber's compositions distill an eclectic blend of the “musical currents hovering about in his time”. John Corigliano succinctly described Barber's style as "an interesting dichotomy of harmonic procedures — an alternation between post-Straussian chromaticism and often diatonic typical American simplicity. Richard Georg Strauss (11 June 1864 &ndash 8 September 1949 was a German Composer of the late Romantic era and early modern era particularly noted "

Among his finest works are his four concertos, one each for Violin (1939), Cello (1945) and Piano (1962), and also the neoclassical Capricorn Concerto for flute, oboe, trumpet and string orchestra. Neoclassicism in music was a 20th century development particularly popular in the period between the two World Wars in which composers drew inspiration from music of the 18th century Samuel Barber 's Capricorn Concerto ( op. 21 completed 8 September 1944 is a chamber piece for Flute, Oboe, Trumpet All of these works are extremely rewarding for the soloists and public alike, as all contain both highly virtuosic and extremely beautiful writing, often simultaneously. The latter three have been unfairly neglected until recent years, when there has been a reawakening of interest in the expressive possibilities of these masterpieces.

Piano

Having studied piano at Curtis, Barber composed many piano pieces. The four-piano "bagatelles" Excursions (1942-44), was his first venture into Americana music. Its elements of boogie-woogie, blues, cowboy songs, and hoedown are not typical of Barber's classical and refined music. Boogie-woogie is a style of Piano -based Blues that became very popular in the late 1930s and early 1940s but originated much earlier and was extended from piano The Blues is a vocal and instrumental form of Music based on the use of the Blue notes It emerged as an accessible form of self-expression A hoedown is a type of American Folk dance or Square dance in duple meter and also the musical form associated with it In 1949, Barber wrote his well received Piano Sonata. The Nocturne for Piano (Hommage to John Field), Opus 33, is another respected piece he produced for the instrument.

Opera

Gian Carlo Menotti, whom Barber had met at Curtis, supplied the libretto (text) for Barber's opera, Vanessa, in which the title role was originally written for Sena Jurinac who later declined the offer. A libretto is the text used in an extended Musical work such as an Opera, Operetta, Masque, sacred or secular Oratorio and Vanessa is an Opera in three (originally four acts by Samuel Barber with an original English Libretto by Gian-Carlo Menotti. Barber's beautiful baritone voice and vocal training were more than adequate to impress Rudolf Bing. In 1956, Barber sang him the score of his opera Vanessa; the impresario was so astonished that he accepted and produced the work immediately. Impresario, from the Italian impresa an enterprise or undertaking is a traditional term still very much in use in the Entertainment industry for Vanessa would go on to win a Pulitzer Prize and gain acclaim as the first American “grand” opera. The Pulitzer Prize, ˈpʊlɨtsɚ PULL-it-sər is an American award regarded as the highest national honor in Newspaper journalism, Menotti would also go on to contribute the libretto for Barber's chamber opera Hand of Bridge and direct the production of many of Barber's operas. A libretto is the text used in an extended Musical work such as an Opera, Operetta, Masque, sacred or secular Oratorio and Barber's Antony and Cleopatra was commissioned to open the new Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center in 1966. Antony and Cleopatra is an Opera in three acts by American composer Samuel Barber. The elaborate production designed by Franco Zeffirelli was marred by numerous technological disasters; it also overwhelmed and obscured Barber's music, which most critics derided as uncharacteristically weak and unoriginal. Franco Zeffirelli, KBE (born Gianfranco Corsi on February 12, 1923) is an Italian Film director. In recent years, a revised version of Antony and Cleopatra, for which Menotti provided collaborative assistance, has enjoyed some success. Antony and Cleopatra is an Opera in three acts by American composer Samuel Barber.

Vocal

With a background deeply rooted in vocals, (having studied with Emilio de Gogorza,) Barber's love of poetry and his intimate knowledge and appreciation of the human voice inspired his vocal writing. Emilio de Gogorza (1872-1949 was a Spanish-American Baritone. Barber's most famous vocal compositions, Knoxville: Summer of 1915 (to words by James Agee) and Dover Beach (to words from a Victorian text by Matthew Arnold), were greatly successful and received critical acclaim, making a powerful case for Barber as one of the twentieth century's most accomplished composers for the voice. Knoxville Summer of 1915 is a 1947 work for Voice and Orchestra by Samuel Barber. James Rufus Agee (November 27 1909 &ndash May 16 1955 was an American Novelist, Journalist, Poet "Dover Beach" is a short lyric poem by English poet Matthew Arnold. Matthew Arnold (24 December 1822 &ndash 15 April 1888 was an English Poet, and Cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools

On October 19, 1974, Barber was awarded the prestigious University of Pennsylvania Glee Club Award of Merit[5], which beginning in 1964 "Established to bring a declaration of appreciation to an individual each year that has made a significant contribution to the world of music and helped to create a climate in which our talents may find valid expression. Founded in 1862 the University of Pennsylvania Glee Club is one of the oldest continually running Glee Clubs in the United States. Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. "

In September of 1992, soprano Cheryl Studer, baritone Thomas Hampson, the preeminent Samuel Barber pianist John Browning and the Emerson String Quartet were captured by Deutsche Grammophon (catalogue 435 867-2) in the complete songs of Samuel Barber (with the exception of "Knoxville: Summer of 1915") at the Brahms-Saal of the famous Musikverein in Vienna, Austria. Cheryl Studer (born October 24, 1955) is a Grammy Award winning American Dramatic soprano who has sung at many of the world's major John Moses Browning ( January 21 or January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) born in Ogden Utah, was an American The Emerson String Quartet is a renowned New York &ndashbased String quartet in residence at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. The Musikverein in Vienna, Austria was opened on January 6 1870, and is famous for its acoustics. The set has become an undisputed classic of American song on record.

Quote

Notable compositions

For a full list of works with opus number and some without, see List of compositions by Samuel Barber

Notes

  1. ^ Samuel Barber Biography - Discography, Music, Lyrics, Album, CD, Career, Famous Works, and Awards
  2. ^ Heyman, Barbara B (1992). Samuel Barber: The Composer and His Music. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 164. ISBN 0195090586.  
  3. ^ Vox Records liner notes
  4. ^ Samuel Barber (1910 - 1981) - Find A Grave Memorial
  5. ^ The University of Pennsylvania Glee Club Award of Merit Recipients.

Reference and further reading

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