Samuel Osmond Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. He is one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century: music critic Donal Henahan stated that "Probably no other American composer has ever enjoyed such early, such persistent and such long-lasting acclaim." His Adagio for Strings (1936) has earned a permanent place in the concert repertory of orchestras. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music twice: for his opera Vanessa (1956–57) and for the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (1962). Also widely performed is his Knoxville: Summer of 1915 (1947), a setting for soprano and orchestra of a prose text by James Agee. At the time of his death, nearly all of his compositions had been recorded.
March 9, 1910, West Chester, Pennsylvania, United States
Died
January 23, 1981, New York City, New York, United States
Place Of Birth
West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA
Profession
Soundtrack, Composer, Music Department
Parents
Samuel Le Roy Barber, Marguerite McLeod Beatty
Star Sign
Pisces
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Trademark
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Lyrical, haunting, unforgettable melodies
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Quote
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I was meant to be a composer and will be I'm sure...Don't ask me to try to forget this unpleasant thing and go play football - please. [To his mother, as a young child.]
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Fact
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Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives." Volume One, 1981-1985, pages 39-41. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998.
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His opera "Vanessa" is one of the few to receive an "original cast" recording. The recording also featured the same conductor (Dimitri Mitropoulos) who led the premiere of the opera.
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Made his entire financial income almost exclusively by composing music.
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Spoke fluent French.
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His 1958 opera "Vanessa," comissioned by the Metropolitan Opera, and his 1962 Piano Concerto, comissioned by the opening festivities of Lincoln Center, both individually won the Pulitzer Prize for Music, in their respective years.
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Studied at the newly founded Curtis Insitute of Music, beginning in 1926.
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Was commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera to write a new American opera, for the inaugural opening of the new Met at Lincoln Center, September 16, 1966. The result of this commission was "Antony and Cleopatra." The libretto was by Franco Zeffirelli.
$2 Million
