Summer Music for Wind Quintet
Encyclopedia
Summer Music for Wind Quintet (Op. 31) is a classical
piece of music composed by Samuel Barber
for a woodwind quintet
.
to write a piece of music for string instrument
s and woodwind instrument
s in 1953. Barber drew from some of his previous work, including the orchestral piece Horizon
, as material for Summer Music. Originally meant to be a septet, Summer Music evolved into a quintet as Barber experimented with the research of John Barrows and his fellow woodwind players, all members of the New York Wind Quintet.
On March 20, 1956, the Detroit Institute of Arts hosted the premiere of Summer Music, which was very successful. Its success was partially attributable to the audience's investiture in the piece. As part of his pay for composing the piece, Barber accepted donations from the audience instead of charging a lump sum. However, the piece was received with great enthusiasm regardless of its funding.
Despite the fact that Summer Music is one of Barber's only compositions for wind instruments, Barber left his legacy on woodwind music, as it has become a foundational piece for wind instrumentalists and appreciated by classical audiences everywhere.
, oboe
, bassoon
, clarinet
, and the horn
. It was written with the abilities of each instrument in mind and includes sections where each instrument is spotlighted. The piece consists of one movement. Evoking the aura of its namesake, Summer Music has been described as lackadaisical at parts and full of life at others. Groups that have recorded Summer Music include: Quintet of the Americas, the New York Wind Quintet, the Philharmonia Quintet, the Arioso Wind Quintet, the St. Louis Orchestra conducted by Leonard Slatkin
, the Michael Thompson Wind Quintet, and the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet.
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
piece of music composed by Samuel Barber
Samuel Barber
Samuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music...
for a woodwind quintet
Wind quintet
A wind quintet, also sometimes known as a woodwind quintet, is a group of five wind players . The term also applies to a composition for such a group....
.
Background
Samuel Barber received an offer from the Chamber Music Society of DetroitChamber Music Society of Detroit
The Chamber Music Society of Detroit, founded in 1944, is the tenth oldest chamber music series in the United States as recognized by . The core of the Chamber Music Society of Detroit’s offerings is a nine-concert chamber music series and a three-concert piano series which bring world-class...
to write a piece of music for string instrument
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
s and woodwind instrument
Woodwind instrument
A woodwind instrument is a musical instrument which produces sound when the player blows air against a sharp edge or through a reed, causing the air within its resonator to vibrate...
s in 1953. Barber drew from some of his previous work, including the orchestral piece Horizon
Horizon
The horizon is the apparent line that separates earth from sky, the line that divides all visible directions into two categories: those that intersect the Earth's surface, and those that do not. At many locations, the true horizon is obscured by trees, buildings, mountains, etc., and the resulting...
, as material for Summer Music. Originally meant to be a septet, Summer Music evolved into a quintet as Barber experimented with the research of John Barrows and his fellow woodwind players, all members of the New York Wind Quintet.
On March 20, 1956, the Detroit Institute of Arts hosted the premiere of Summer Music, which was very successful. Its success was partially attributable to the audience's investiture in the piece. As part of his pay for composing the piece, Barber accepted donations from the audience instead of charging a lump sum. However, the piece was received with great enthusiasm regardless of its funding.
Despite the fact that Summer Music is one of Barber's only compositions for wind instruments, Barber left his legacy on woodwind music, as it has become a foundational piece for wind instrumentalists and appreciated by classical audiences everywhere.
Composition
Summer Music showcases each instrument of the woodwind quintet for which it was composed, namely the fluteFlute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
, bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
, clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
, and the horn
Horn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
. It was written with the abilities of each instrument in mind and includes sections where each instrument is spotlighted. The piece consists of one movement. Evoking the aura of its namesake, Summer Music has been described as lackadaisical at parts and full of life at others. Groups that have recorded Summer Music include: Quintet of the Americas, the New York Wind Quintet, the Philharmonia Quintet, the Arioso Wind Quintet, the St. Louis Orchestra conducted by Leonard Slatkin
Leonard Slatkin
Leonard Edward Slatkin is an American conductor and composer.-Early life and education:Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His father Felix Slatkin was the violinist, conductor and founder of the Hollywood String Quartet,...
, the Michael Thompson Wind Quintet, and the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet.