Samuel Barber
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Samuel Osborne Barber (March 9, 1910–January 23, 1981) was an American composer of classical music, best known for his Adagio For Strings.
He was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania and began to compose at the age of seven. He studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia before becoming a fellow of the American Academy in Rome in 1935. The following year he wrote his String Quartet in B minor, the second movement of which he would arrange, at Arturo Toscanini’s suggestion, for string orchestra as Adagio for Strings, and again for mixed chorus as Agnus Dei.
He tended to avoid the experimentalism of some other American composers of his generation, preferring relatively traditional harmonies and forms until late in his life. Most of his work is lushly melodic and has often been described as neo-romantic, though some of his later works, notably the Third Essay and the Dance of Vengeance, display a masterful use of percussive effects, modernism, and neo-Stravinskian effects.
His songs, accompanied by piano or orchestra, are among the most popular 20th-century songs in the classical repertoire. They include a setting of Matthew Arnold’s Dover Beach, originally written for string quartet and baritone, the Hermit Songs on anonymous Irish texts of the 8th to 13th centuries, and Knoxville: Summer of 1915, written for the soprano Eleanor Steber and based on an autobiographical text by James Agee, the introductory portion of his novel A Death in the Family. Barber possessed a good baritone voice and, for a while, considered becoming a professional singer. He made a few recordings, including his own Dover Beach.
Adagio For Strings.He was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania and began to compose at the age of seven. He studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia before becoming a fellow of the American Academy in Rome in 1935. The following year he wrote his String Quartet in B minor, the second movement of which he would arrange, at Arturo Toscanini’s suggestion, for string orchestra as Adagio for Strings, and again for mixed chorus as Agnus Dei.
He tended to avoid the experimentalism of some other American composers of his generation, preferring relatively traditional harmonies and forms until late in his life. Most of his work is lushly melodic and has often been described as neo-romantic, though some of his later works, notably the Third Essay and the Dance of Vengeance, display a masterful use of percussive effects, modernism, and neo-Stravinskian effects.
His songs, accompanied by piano or orchestra, are among the most popular 20th-century songs in the classical repertoire. They include a setting of Matthew Arnold’s Dover Beach, originally written for string quartet and baritone, the Hermit Songs on anonymous Irish texts of the 8th to 13th centuries, and Knoxville: Summer of 1915, written for the soprano Eleanor Steber and based on an autobiographical text by James Agee, the introductory portion of his novel A Death in the Family. Barber possessed a good baritone voice and, for a while, considered becoming a professional singer. He made a few recordings, including his own Dover Beach.
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Barber: Piano Music
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Toccata Festiva
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Shoutbox
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DavidBN wrote:
Adagio for Strings, Op. 11 is explosion for my emotions... Thank You Mr. Samuel Barber!
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Philthehippy wrote:
Truly amazing man. O love his music.
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slavicfrost wrote:
I lolled at the first measures of the organ part in his Toccata Festiva.
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Biscuit1978 wrote:
Come along and join the group Orchestral Composer of the Week. Nominate your 5 favourite composers each week and see who gets into the Hall of Fame.
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FeatgaryTD wrote:
v "I'm not an elephant!.. I'm not an animal!.. I'm a HUMAN!!"
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DonMajesto wrote:
The Elephant Man.
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LluisPaciencia wrote:
Pasió i dolor tendre. Meravellosa composició que m'arriba a lànima.
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Karlo_Luiten wrote:
DAT ADAGIO [2]
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MaceWindow wrote:
Agnus Dei is amazing....
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exoapollo wrote:
DAT ADAGIO
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UrbannLegend wrote:
Adagio For Strings and The Elephant Man, something AMAZING!
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Salt_The_Fries wrote:
one hit wonder :<
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lightyears84 wrote:
amazing
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AmbientDowntemp wrote:
I adore Agnus Dei
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spideralex90 wrote:
I know it's the most played song but Damn Adagio For Strings is perfect.
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m_xer wrote:
While large part of electronic music is like you describe if you dig deeper you might find stuff you like. Like for example Laurent Garnier or Jeff Mills.
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BlockJuice wrote:
Love this guy, fuck Tiesto.
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RoterMilan2 wrote:
manchmal nötig...................
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jiveraptor wrote:
JeKaterynka: What kind of idiot thinks classical music is shit and techno is good?
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nur-gambler wrote:
блин, смотрел "Взвод" и весь фильм думал - что за знакомая до боли музыка? оказывается Тиесто плагиатор :P
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Re: Barber: Agnus Dei
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Adagio for Strings, op.11
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Adagio For Strings
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taysenior and MatthewHeslop38 added Samuel Barber to their libraries. yesterday afternoon
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