SAMUEL BARBER - Biography
Samuel Barber was born in March of 1910 in West Chester, Pennsylvania. He wrote his first piece at age 7 and his first opera at age 10. As a 14-year old, he entered the Curtis Institute, where he studied voice, piano, and composition. Later, he studied conducting with Fritz Reiner.
At Curtis, Barber met Gian Carlo Menotti with whom he would form a lifelong personal and professional relationship. Menotti supplied libretti for Barber's operas Vanessa (for which Barber won the Pulitzer) and A Hand of Bridge. Barber's music was championed by a remarkable range of renowned artists, musicians, and conductors including Vladimir Horowitz, John Browning, Martha Graham, Arturo Toscanini, Dmitri Mitropoulos, Jennie Tourel, and Eleanor Steber. His Antony and Cleopatra was commissioned to open the new Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center in 1966.
Barber was the recipient of numerous awards and prizes including the American Prix de Rome, two Pulitzers, and election to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His intensely lyrical Adagio for Strings has become one of the most recognizable and beloved compositions, both in concerts and films (Platoon, The Elephant Man, El Norte, Lorenzo's Oil).
Samuel Barber's Violin Concerto op.14 will be featured in the "All American" Concert performed by the Portland Chamber Orchestra on Saturday, January 27, 2007 at 8 pm, with Andy Liang as violinist.
Kaul Auditorium, Reed College, Portland Oregon
