Episode 16 - 1958: Samuel Barber, Vanessa
Hearing The Pulitzers
English - March 12, 2021 19:41 - 34 minutes - 40 MBMusic History Music Music Commentary Homepage Download Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Previous Episode: Episode 15 - 1957: Norman Dello Joio, Meditations on Ecclesiastes
In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore the fourth opera to win the Pulitzer Prize in the 1950s, Samuel Barber's Vanessa. In the mid-20th century United States, Samuel Barber was one of the most performed American composers, known especially for his beautiful vocal music that closely mirrored European models. But with the Pulitzer traditionally awarding works that are more "American" in sound, does Vanessa represent a departure from convention for Barber or the Pulitzer board?
If you'd like more information about Samuel Barber or Vanessa we recommend:
This fascinating background article in Pasatiempo by James M. Keller
Howard Pollack's article "Samuel Barber, Jean Sibelius, and the Making of an American Romantic" in The Musical Quarterly, vol. 84, vo. 2 (Summer, 2000): 175-205
Barbara B. Heyman's biography Samuel Barber: The Composer and His Music, 2nd edition (Oxford University Press, 2020)
A synopsis of the opera