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Samuel Barber In the mid-20th century, when composers were writing with angularity and dissonance, Samuel Barber forged his own lyrical, romantic style. By the time he was 26 years old, he had composed the iconic Adagio for Strings.

Samuel Barber

From Funerals To Festivals, The Curious Journey Of The 'Adagio For Strings'

Dutch superstar DJ Tiesto (seen here performing in Miami in February 2019) released a massively popular electronic reworking of Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings in 2005. Paras Griffin/Getty Images for E11EVEN Miami hide caption

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Paras Griffin/Getty Images for E11EVEN Miami

American Anthem

From Funerals To Festivals, The Curious Journey Of The 'Adagio For Strings'

How did Samuel Barber's stirring, lush work for strings — music that has become America's semi-official music of mourning — morph into a beloved and endlessly remixed dance floor anthem?

From Funerals To Festivals, The Curious Journey Of The 'Adagio For Strings'

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The Songs That Make Us Cry

The music that makes one of us emotional doesn't always make sense to others. William Lovelace/Getty Images hide caption

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William Lovelace/Getty Images

All Songs Considered

The Songs That Make Us Cry

This week: results from our survey about the songs that bring tears to your eyes. Hear listener submissions, as well as personal picks from the All Songs crew.

The Songs That Make Us Cry

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Soothing The Savage Beat: When Electronic Artists Conjure Classical

Electronic artists such as Mason Bates (pictured above), Aphex Twin and Tiësto have blended classical music into their dance beats. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Deceptive Cadence

Soothing The Savage Beat: When Electronic Artists Conjure Classical

From pulsing techno to alluring ambient, hear what happens when two seemingly opposite musical realms collide on the dance floor and in the chill room. Hear a techno take on Carmina Burana and more.

The Innovative Mosaic Of American Symphonies

Conductor JoAnn Falletta. Cheryl Gorski/courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Cheryl Gorski/courtesy of the artist

Deceptive Cadence

The Innovative Mosaic Of American Symphonies

Conductor JoAnn Falletta, one of the strongest champions of American symphonic music, asks: Does a great American symphony even have to be a symphony?

Hear JoAnn Falletta's Discussion With Robert Siegel

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From the Top

Classical Teens: Making Music in Maryland

From the Music Center at Strathmore in Bethesda, Md., an award-winning teen quartet plays Debussy, a young baritone sings Vaughn Williams and a 15-year-old violinist plays music from a Saint-Saëns concerto. This show originally aired on October 3, 2007.

Classical Teens: Making Music in Maryland

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Music

New York Philharmonic Set for North Korea Show

The New York Philharmonic will perform Tuesday at the East Pyongyang Grand Theatre in Pyongyang, North Korea. The concert represents an historic occasion, as a prominent U.S. cultural institution visits an isolated nation.

New York Philharmonic Set for North Korea Show

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Music

Organ Music: Pulling Out All the Stops

The organ has been described, along with the clock, as the most complex of all mechanical instruments developed before the Industrial Revolution. Miles Hoffman unravels the complexities and the mysteries of the musical giant.

Organ Music: Pulling Out All the Stops

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Suds And Sensibility: Barber's Violin Concerto

Canadian violinist James Ehnes won a Grammy in 2008 for his recording of Barber's Violin Concerto. courtesy of the artist hide caption

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courtesy of the artist

Classics in Concert

Suds And Sensibility: Barber's Violin Concerto

American Public Media

Barber's beautiful concerto came about at the request of a soap magnate named Samuel Fels. Although the business end of the commission was sullied, the concerto came out sparkling. Hear violinist James Ehnes play the piece in concert.

Hear James Ehnes Play Barber In Concert

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The Life And Music Of Samuel Barber

Samuel Barber. Gordon Parks/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images hide caption

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Gordon Parks/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images

Music News

The Life And Music Of Samuel Barber

In the middle of the 20th century, when composers were writing with angularity and dissonance, Barber forged his own lyrical, romantic style. By the time he was 26, he'd composed the iconic Adagio for Strings.

Violin Concerto, Op. 14 [Allegro]

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The Impact of Barber's 'Adagio for Strings'

American composer Samuel Barber (1910-1981) won the Pulitzer Prize twice — once for his opera Vanessa in 1957 and again for his 1962 piano concerto. Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Hulton Archive/Getty Images

The Sounds of American Culture

The Impact of Barber's 'Adagio for Strings'

Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings" is considered one of the most popular of all 20th-century classical works. Its 1938 premiere by the NBC Orchestra with conductor Arturo Toscanini is a recent selection for the National Recording Registry.

The Impact of Barber's 'Adagio for Strings'

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Building A Career On Barber, The Enigmatic American

Samuel Barber in 1944. Wikimedia Commons hide caption

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Wikimedia Commons

Marin Alsop on Music

Building A Career On Barber, The Enigmatic American

To begin her recording career, conductor Marin Alsop was asked to record all of Samuel Barber's orchestral music. She quickly discovered that there's much more to the composer's music than his famed Adagio for Strings.

Building A Career On Barber, The Enigmatic American

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Classical Fans Tell Stories Of 'First Loves'

"What's the first piece of classical music you fell in love with?" The question launched a blog, and an avalanche of powerful stories. Getty Images hide caption

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Deceptive Cadence

Classical Fans Tell Stories Of 'First Loves'

The simple question, "What was the first piece of classical music you fell in love with?" launched a new music blog and an avalanche of powerful stories.

Classical Fans Tell Stories Of 'First Loves'

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Samuel Barber At 100, Reconsidered

Samuel Barber wasn't afraid to use traditional tonality in his works, despite scathing reviews from critics. Bettmann/Corbis hide caption

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Bettmann/Corbis

Music News

Samuel Barber At 100, Reconsidered

He was once dismissed as a composer for "high middlebrow taste." But Barber, who wrote the famous Adagio for Strings, would not be criticized if he were an emerging composer today, 100 years after his birth.

Samuel Barber At 100, Reconsidered

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Classics in Concert

Samuel Barber's Summertime Idyll

American Public Media

With the apple-pie wholesomeness of a Norman Rockwell painting, but with a touch of melancholy, Barber created an American classic when he composed Knoxville: Summer of 1915. Carolyn Sampson sings it in concert with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra.

Barber: Knoxville Summer of 1915

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Barber's 'Adagio': Naked Expression Of Emotion

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What Makes It Great

Barber's 'Adagio': Naked Expression Of Emotion

From sorrow, the music builds to a climax of intensity, and finally reaches serene acceptance. Commentator Rob Kapilow conducts a guided tour of Barber's best-known piece.

Hear What Makes Barber's 'Adagio For Strings' So Great

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