Samual Barber page with free midi's to download

SAMUEL BARBER

9thMarch 1910 --- 23rdJanuary 1981

Samual  Barber  (born  1910, West Chester, Pa. U.S.--died 1981,  New York,  N.Y.), composer who is considered one
of the most expressive representatives of the lyric and romantic trends in musical composition in the United States.

Barber  studied the piano from an  early age and soon began to compose. In 1924 he entered the Curtis Institute of
Music in  Philadelphia, where,  in  addition to piano  and composition,  he studied singing and  conducting.  After his
graduation  in  1934,  Barber devoted himself entirely  to composition.  He developed a  distinctive  style,  absorbing
some technical procedures of modern music but without indulging in experimentation for  its own sake. He went on
to  established  his reputation with  his overture to  The School for  Scandal (1933), based on  Sheridan's comedy by
that  name, with Music for  a Scene from  Shelley  (1935), inspired  by the  poet Percy Bysshe  Shelley's Prometheus
Unbound.

Many of Barbers works make literary allusions, his music is not programmatic in the strict sense. Significant in this
respect  are  the two Essays for  Orchestra (1938, 1942),which are intended as musical counterparts of the literary
form. Structural considerations govern Barbers instrumental writing; there is great astringency in harmony but the
basic tonality remains secure; the rhythmic lines are very strong, without loss of coherence.

In 1936 Barber composed hisString Quartet,  the slow movement of which,  arranged for  string orchestra and was
performed under  the  title  Adagio for Strings by  the NBC Symphony Orchestra  under Arturo  Toscanini in 1938, it
had acquired an extraordinary popularity both in the United States and in Europe.

Barber's First Symphony (1936, revised 1942) is in the Romantic tradition. In the Second Symphony (1944, revised
1947)  commissioned  by  the U.S. Army Air Forces  (which he had joined  in 1943), Barber introduced  an electronic
instrument imitating radio signals for air navigation, replaced in the revised version by an E-flat clarinet.

Barber also wrote a Violin Concerto(1941) and a Cello Concerto 1946). His Piano Sonata (1949) the most ambitious
work  in  this  form by an  American  composer.  Other compositions  are Dover Beach,  for  voice and  string  quartet
(1931),  three  vocal works with orchestra,  Knoxville: Summer of  1915 (1948), Prayers  of Kierkegaard (1954), and
Andromaches  Farewell (1962); Medea (1947),  and the  opera Vanessa, produced  by the  Metropolitan Opera Assoc
New York City, in 1958, which was awarded a Pulitzer Prize.

Barber's Piano Concerto (1962) brought him new international success and another Pulitzer Prize (1963). His opera
Antony  and  Cleopatra opened the new auditorium  of  the Metropolitan Opera Association at  the Lincoln Center for
the  Performing  Arts  in 1966.  After  a period of creative inactivity, Barber  resumed composing  for  orchestra.  The
Lovers  and  Fadograph  of a  Yestern  Scene  were  first  performed  in 1971 and  Third  Essay for  Orchestra  had  its
premiere in 1980.

Copyright 1994-1998 Encyclopaedia Britannica

If you require any more info on Samuel Barber, please visit Walter Simmons excellent site. "click here".

Last Updated on 2022
By Steven Ritchie

And now for the Music

Many thanks to Philip Decloux for the great music below, Email (declouxp @ hotmail.com)

(3093)"Essay for Orchestra No.1". Sequenced by Philip Decloux.

(3094)"Essay for Orchestra No.2". Sequenced by Philip Decloux.

"Knoxville: Summer of 1915". Sequenced by David Siu.

Thanks to Bjorn Lengton for the music below. Email(mb.Lengton.Athelas@12move.nl)

"Adagio for Strings, string quartet in B minor, opus 11". Sequenced by Bjorn Lengton.

(1814)"Violin Concerto 1st Mov". Sequenced by David Siu

444)"Violin Concerto 3rd Mov". Sequenced by David Siu

(1813)"Reincarnations". Sequenced by Ted Clark

(1809)"Excursions No.1". Sequenced by E.P.Grant

(1810)"Excursions No.2". Sequenced by E.P.Grant

(1811)"Excursions No.3". Sequenced by E.P.Grant

(1812)"Excursions No.4". Sequenced by E.P.Grant

New (3652)"Sure on this shining night, Opus.3, No.3". Sequencer Unknown.

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