Description

Book Synopsis
A pivotal twentieth-century composer, Samuel Barber earned a long list of honors and accolades that included two Pulitzer Prizes for Music and the public support of conductors like Arturo Toscanini, Serge Koussevitzky, and Leonard Bernstein. Barber’s works have since become standard concert repertoire and continue to flourish across high art and popular culture.

Acclaimed biographer Howard Pollack (Aaron Copland, George Gershwin) offers a multifaceted account of Barber’s life and music while placing the artist in his social and cultural milieu. Born into a musical family, Barber pursued his artistic ambitions from childhood. Pollack follows Barber’s path from his precocious youth through a career where, from the start, the composer consistently received prizes, fellowships, and other recognition. Stylistic analyses of works like the Adagio for Strings, the Violin Concerto, Knoxville: Summer of 1915 for voice and orchestra, the Piano Con

Trade Review
"Howard Pollack's 'Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy,' which continues his remarkable series of books on American composers and lyricists, may be the finest biography of an American classical musician since Anthony Tommasini's 'Virgil Thomson: Composer on the Aisle.'. . . Pollack is a master of writing about artistic creation without forbidding jargon, his explanations of Barber's music are just as arresting as the biographical passages." --Wall Street Journal
"Will surely be the authoritative work on talented composer Barber for decades to come. This monumental book is both the account of a fascinating life and a detailed assessment of the composer's works." --Library Journal, starred review
"Barber's music continues to be treasured for its melding of flawless craftsmanship and deep feeling. Barber himself was more complicated, as this fine biography reveals." --New Yorker
"[Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy] offers a more rounded picture of Barber the man, and doesn't shy away from shining the spotlight on his less admirable traits. . . . Pollack is [also] exceptionally conscientious in tracing the lives of Barber's musical works as well, discussing not only premieres, performances, recordings, and critical reactions but also the many ballets and dances that choreographers created to his work." --Gramophone
“Richly detailed, beautifully written, and as humane as it is observant, Howard Pollack’s biography paints a convincing portrait not only of Samuel Barber himself, but of the unique milieu that shaped his music and character. Sam began as my mentor and later became my colleague and friend; I recognize him throughout this remarkable book.”--John Corigliano, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer
“This critical biography will no doubt become a foundational text. Pollack humanizes Barber by providing new insights, information, and perspectives about him that include religious, political, social, and cultural issues, and details about his interactions with an array of artists, friends, and institutions. The author’s flowing style provides a meaty narrative for general readers while his use and interpretation of an exhaustive trove of sources will serve scholars for years to come.”--Sally Bick, author of Unsettled Scores: Politics, Hollywood, and the Film Music of Aaron Copland and Hanns Eisler

Table of Contents
Introduction

  1. Samuel Barber and His Family
  2. A Musical Education
  3. Personal Matters: Early Years
  4. Other Formative Experiences
  5. Early Works Through 1932
  6. More Adventures at Home and Abroad, 1933-1939
  7. Music for a Scene from Shelley and One Day of Spring
  8. Songs and Choruses, 1934-1940
  9. The First Symphony and the String Quartet
  10. Adagio for Strings and the First Essay
  11. The Violin Concerto and Second Essay
  12. In the Army
  13. The Second Symphony and Excursions
  14. Capricorn Concerto and the Cello Concerto
  15. Barber and His Contemporaries
  16. Medea
  17. Knoxville: Summer of 1915 and “Nuvoletta”
  18. The Piano Sonata and Mélodies passagères
  19. Personal Matters: Later Years
  20. A Composer’s Life
  21. Souvenirs and Hermit Songs
  22. Prayers of Kierkegaard, Adventure, and Summer Music
  23. Vanessa
  24. From the Nocturne to Die Natali
  25. The Piano Concerto and Andromache’s Farewell
  26. The Creation of Antony and Cleopatra
  27. Antony and Cleopatra in Performance
  28. From Chorale for Ascension Day to The Lovers
  29. From Fadograph of a Yestern Scene to the Canzonetta
Epilogue and Conclusion

Notes

Index

Samuel Barber

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    A Hardback by Howard Pollack

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      Publisher: University of Illinois Press
      Publication Date: 04/04/2023
      ISBN13: 9780252044908, 978-0252044908
      ISBN10: 0252044908
      Also in:
      Composers and songwriters Musicians, singers, bands and groups

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      A pivotal twentieth-century composer, Samuel Barber earned a long list of honors and accolades that included two Pulitzer Prizes for Music and the public support of conductors like Arturo Toscanini, Serge Koussevitzky, and Leonard Bernstein. Barber’s works have since become standard concert repertoire and continue to flourish across high art and popular culture.

      Acclaimed biographer Howard Pollack (Aaron Copland, George Gershwin) offers a multifaceted account of Barber’s life and music while placing the artist in his social and cultural milieu. Born into a musical family, Barber pursued his artistic ambitions from childhood. Pollack follows Barber’s path from his precocious youth through a career where, from the start, the composer consistently received prizes, fellowships, and other recognition. Stylistic analyses of works like the Adagio for Strings, the Violin Concerto, Knoxville: Summer of 1915 for voice and orchestra, the Piano Con

      Trade Review
      "Howard Pollack's 'Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy,' which continues his remarkable series of books on American composers and lyricists, may be the finest biography of an American classical musician since Anthony Tommasini's 'Virgil Thomson: Composer on the Aisle.'. . . Pollack is a master of writing about artistic creation without forbidding jargon, his explanations of Barber's music are just as arresting as the biographical passages." --Wall Street Journal
      "Will surely be the authoritative work on talented composer Barber for decades to come. This monumental book is both the account of a fascinating life and a detailed assessment of the composer's works." --Library Journal, starred review
      "Barber's music continues to be treasured for its melding of flawless craftsmanship and deep feeling. Barber himself was more complicated, as this fine biography reveals." --New Yorker
      "[Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy] offers a more rounded picture of Barber the man, and doesn't shy away from shining the spotlight on his less admirable traits. . . . Pollack is [also] exceptionally conscientious in tracing the lives of Barber's musical works as well, discussing not only premieres, performances, recordings, and critical reactions but also the many ballets and dances that choreographers created to his work." --Gramophone
      “Richly detailed, beautifully written, and as humane as it is observant, Howard Pollack’s biography paints a convincing portrait not only of Samuel Barber himself, but of the unique milieu that shaped his music and character. Sam began as my mentor and later became my colleague and friend; I recognize him throughout this remarkable book.”--John Corigliano, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer
      “This critical biography will no doubt become a foundational text. Pollack humanizes Barber by providing new insights, information, and perspectives about him that include religious, political, social, and cultural issues, and details about his interactions with an array of artists, friends, and institutions. The author’s flowing style provides a meaty narrative for general readers while his use and interpretation of an exhaustive trove of sources will serve scholars for years to come.”--Sally Bick, author of Unsettled Scores: Politics, Hollywood, and the Film Music of Aaron Copland and Hanns Eisler

      Table of Contents
      Introduction

      1. Samuel Barber and His Family
      2. A Musical Education
      3. Personal Matters: Early Years
      4. Other Formative Experiences
      5. Early Works Through 1932
      6. More Adventures at Home and Abroad, 1933-1939
      7. Music for a Scene from Shelley and One Day of Spring
      8. Songs and Choruses, 1934-1940
      9. The First Symphony and the String Quartet
      10. Adagio for Strings and the First Essay
      11. The Violin Concerto and Second Essay
      12. In the Army
      13. The Second Symphony and Excursions
      14. Capricorn Concerto and the Cello Concerto
      15. Barber and His Contemporaries
      16. Medea
      17. Knoxville: Summer of 1915 and “Nuvoletta”
      18. The Piano Sonata and Mélodies passagères
      19. Personal Matters: Later Years
      20. A Composer’s Life
      21. Souvenirs and Hermit Songs
      22. Prayers of Kierkegaard, Adventure, and Summer Music
      23. Vanessa
      24. From the Nocturne to Die Natali
      25. The Piano Concerto and Andromache’s Farewell
      26. The Creation of Antony and Cleopatra
      27. Antony and Cleopatra in Performance
      28. From Chorale for Ascension Day to The Lovers
      29. From Fadograph of a Yestern Scene to the Canzonetta
      Epilogue and Conclusion

      Notes

      Index

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