Forty years ago tomorrow, the soul that represented a summer breeze of lyricism in 20th Century classical music left this world. On January 23, 1981, Samuel Barber died.
In a century of fragmented styles – some austere, some pandering, and some destined to be repurposed in horror movie soundtracks – Barber’s style remained solidly in touch with a lyrical core and grounded in the human heart.
His Violin Concerto (1939) begins like a calming sigh, a respite from pagan spring rites and 12-tone mathematics. And it dares us to dwell in one of the most audacious ideas a composer could advance in the middle of the 20th Century: that melody matters. Harmony, too. If not for the fact that he could pull it off so utterly convincingly, it would seem quaint and old-fashioned. And even in the rough-and-tumble third movement, a playful glee never disappears.
Just three years earlier, he finished writing his only String Quartet (1936). The impassioned first theme and prayer-ful second theme are worthy in their own right, but in this setting function more as a frame around the masterpiece of a slow movement, the Adagio. The slow movement to end all slow movements. The slow movement that transcends time and meter. The slow movement which seems at the same time to be both in ecstasy and in mourning; heavenly and human; an ode to physical intimacy and a requiem of loss.
Such a profoundly moving piece of chamber music, of course, couldn’t go unnoticed by orchestral fans, who felt it deserved an “upgrade” to become a work for orchestra: the “Adagio for Strings.” But to this former string quartet chauvinist, the lush sound of a full string section – while gorgeous – is no substitute for the intimacy and struggle of a great string quartet performance. With its five flats, 4/2 time signature, and “Molto adagio” tempo, it demands the utmost bow control and an impeccable plan for tuning between the four performers. And this in turn demands a lightness and flow that are missing from so many ponderous string orchestra versions.
So here’s to the memory of a 20th Century genius of the heart.
I’ve highlighted my two favorite works by Samuel Barber, but there are obviously many more masterpieces. What’s your favorite work of his? Let me know in the comments below!
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I’m a violinist and private teacher in the Chicago area, and in a previous musical life I was in a professional string quartet. Teaching violin and chamber music are dear to my heart. Send me a note or leave a comment on a post — I’d love to hear from you.
I’m a violinist and private teacher in the Chicago area, and in a previous musical life I was in a professional string quartet. Teaching violin and chamber music are dear to my heart. Send me a note or leave a comment on a post — I’d love to hear from you.