The String Quartet in B minor, Op. 11 was written in 1935–36 by

Samuel Barber Samuel Osmond Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer, pianist, conductor, baritone, and music educator, and one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century. The music critic Donal Henahan said, "Proba ...

. Barber arranged the middle movement for

string orchestra A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first ...

as his well-known ''

Adagio for Strings ''Adagio for Strings'' is a work by Samuel Barber, arguably his best known, arranged for string orchestra from the second movement of his String Quartet, Op. 11. Barber finished the arrangement in 1936, the same year that he wrote the quarte ...

'' in 1936. Barber continued to revise the piece, particularly the

finale Finale may refer to: Pieces of music * Finale (music), the last movement of a piece * ''Finale'' (album), a 1977 album by Loggins and Messina * " Finale B", a 1996 song from the rock opera ''Rent'' * "Finale", a song by Anthrax from ''State of E ...

, until 1943. #Molto allegro e appassionato #Molto adagio ttacca#Molto allegro (come prima) Begun while living in Austria with his partner

Gian Carlo Menotti Gian Carlo Menotti (, ; July 7, 1911 – February 1, 2007) was an Italian composer, librettist, director, and playwright who is primarily known for his output of 25 operas. Although he often referred to himself as an American composer, he kept ...

after Barber's

Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

, Barber intended that the quartet be premiered by the Curtis String Quartet, but did not finish the piece in time for their concert tour. On September 19, 1936, Barber wrote their cellist

Orlando Cole Orlando Cole (August 16, 1908 – January 25, 2010) was an American cello teacher who taught two generations of soloists, chamber musicians, and first cellists in a dozen leading orchestras, including Lynn Harrell, Jonah Kim, Ronald Leonard, ...

: "I have just finished the slow movement of my quartet today—it is a knockout! Now for a Finale." Having completed a finale, the

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinist ...

was premiered in its provisional form by the

Pro Arte Quartet The Pro Arte String Quartet is a string quartet founded in Belgium, which became affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1941. History Origins 1912-1941 The Pro Arte String Quartet was founded by Alphonse Onnou in Brussels in 1912. ...

on December 14, 1936, at the Villa Aurelia in Rome. Afterward Barber withdrew the finale so as to rewrite it, which he did by April 1937. He rewrote it again before it was published. The final form was premiered by the Budapest Quartet on May 28, 1943, at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...

in Washington, D.C. The opening movement is in

sonata form Sonata form (also ''sonata-allegro form'' or ''first movement form'') is a musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of the 18th c ...

, the second movement a famous

adagio Adagio (Italian for 'slowly', ) may refer to: Music * Adagio, a tempo marking, indicating that music is to be played slowly, or a composition intended to be played in this manner * Adagio (band), a French progressive metal band Albums * ''Ada ...

, and the final version of the finale, added to the second movement ''

attacca A variety of musical terms are likely to be encountered in printed scores, music reviews, and program notes. Most of the terms are Italian, in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical conventions. Sometimes, the special mus ...

'', is shortened, lasting two-minutes, and revisits themes from the opening movement, thereby creating a

cyclic form Cyclic form is a technique of musical construction, involving multiple sections or movements, in which a theme, melody, or thematic material occurs in more than one movement as a unifying device. Sometimes a theme may occur at the beginning and ...

for the quartet.Keller (2011), p.12. The opening movement has three theme areas, the first a dramatic

motif Motif may refer to: General concepts * Motif (chess composition), an element of a move in the consideration of its purpose * Motif (folkloristics), a recurring element that creates recognizable patterns in folklore and folk-art traditions * Moti ...

stated in unison by all four instruments, the second slinky

chorale Chorale is the name of several related musical forms originating in the music genre of the Lutheran chorale: * Hymn tune of a Lutheran hymn (e.g. the melody of " Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme"), or a tune in a similar format (e.g. one of the ...

like music, and the third a yearning lyrical melody. The quartet as a whole is in the

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (ma ...

of B minor; however, the central movement is in B minor.Keller (2011), p.13. The materials of the second movement consist of "a very slow and extended melody built from stepwise intervals, slightly varied in its numerous repetitions, uncoiling over (or in the midst of) sustained chords that change with note-by-note reluctance, all of it building into a powerful climax at the high end of the instruments' range and then quickly receding to the contemplative quietude that ultimately defines this musical expanse." Barber accepted a commission for a second string quartet in 1947, but never got past a few pages of sketches.

Discography

Alexander String Quartet The Alexander String Quartet is a string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The ass ...

– ''Thealexanderstringquartet'' (1992, Amplitude CLCD-2009, CD) *Beaux-Arts String Quartet – ''Diamond: String Quartet No. 4; Barber: String Quartet in B Minor, Op. 11'' (1965, Epic LC 3907, LP) *

Borodin Quartet The Borodin Quartet is a string quartet that was founded in 1945 in the then Soviet Union. It is one of the world's longest-lasting string quartets, having marked its 70th-anniversary season in 2015. The quartet was one of the Soviet Union's best ...

– ''Kvartet'' (1961, Artia MK 1563, monaural LP; also issued as M zhdunarodnaya ygaKHN 558–63, and MK D 06173(a) – D 06174(a)) *Chester String Quartet – ''The Chester String Quartet'' (1991, Koch International Classics 3-7069-2 H1, CD) *

Cleveland Quartet The Cleveland Quartet was a string quartet founded in 1969 by violinist Donald Weilerstein, at the time an instructor at the Cleveland Institute of Music, whose director Victor Babin had secured funding for an in-resident quartet (the institute's f ...

– ''Barber: String Quartet, op. 11; Ives: String Quartet No. 2'' (1976, RCA Red Seal ARL1-1599, LP) * Composers String Quartet – ''American Classics for String Quartet'' (1983, Musical Heritage Society MHS 4823, LP) *

Concord String Quartet The Concord String Quartet was an American string quartet established in 1971. The members of the quartet were Mark Sokol and Andrew Jennings, violins; John Kochánowski, viola; Norman Fischer, cello. They gave their last regular concert on May 1 ...

– with

George Rochberg George Rochberg (July 5, 1918May 29, 2005) was an American composer of contemporary classical music. Long a serial composer, Rochberg abandoned the practice following the death of his teenage son in 1964; he claimed this compositional technique ...

, String Quartet No. 7 (with baritone, 1979), and Barber, ''Dover Beach'' (1983, Nonesuch 78017, LP) *Dickermann Quartett Frankfurt – ''Barber: Streichquartett Op. 11'' (1984, Thorofon Capella MTH 275, LP) *

Emerson String Quartet The Emerson String Quartet, also known as the Emerson Quartet, is an American string quartet that was initially formed as a student group at the Juilliard School in 1976. It was named for American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson and beg ...

– ''American Originals'' (1993, Deutsche Grammophon)MusicBrainz: release: American Originals: Ives / Barber String Quartets
/ref> *

Endellion String Quartet The Endellion String Quartet was a British string quartet, named after St Endellion in Cornwall. History The quartet was formed in 1979 with the following original members: * Andrew Watkinson, violin * Louise Williams, violin * Garfield Jackson, v ...

– ''Dover Beach, Serenade, Songs, String Quartet'' (1993, Virgin Classics 7243 5 45033, CD) *

– ''American Classics: Samuel Barber'' (2009, EMI Classics) * Cypress String Quartet – ''The American Album'' (2011, Cypress Performing Arts Association) * Lindsay String Quartet – ''Twenty-five Years Lindsay String Quartet "Live"'' (1992, ASV CD DCA 825, CD) *Serafin String Quartet – ''Serafin String Quartet'' (2010, Centaur CRC 3050, CD) *Stradivari Records String Quartet – ''Barber: String Quartet, Opus 11'' (1948, Stradivari STR 602, LP) *

Tokyo String Quartet The was an international string quartet that operated from 1969 to 2013. The group formed in 1969 at the Juilliard School of Music. The founding members attended the Toho Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo, where they studied with Professor Hideo ...

– ''A Way a Lone'' (1993, RCA Victor Red Seal 09026-61387-2, CD)

Sources

External links

Sierra Chamber Society Program Notes
, ''FugueMasters.com''. {{Authority control 1936 compositions Compositions by Samuel Barber

Barber A barber is a person whose occupation is mainly to cut, dress, groom, style and shave men's and boys' hair or beards. A barber's place of work is known as a "barbershop" or a "barber's". Barbershops are also places of social interaction and publi ...

Compositions in B minor