Barber's Adagio for Strings is an incredibly beautiful and somewhat introverted piece of music. When I'm feeling down and/or stressed out, Barber's Adagio for Strings fits the bill when I really need to listen to music without any harsh or abrasive orchestrations; it's buttery smooth and extremely comforting. Barber's Adagio for Strings has a profound effect on its listeners - the remarkable ability to draw the listener into a quiet meditation. Because of this, Barber's Adagio for Strings was played at the funerals of Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy, as well as Princess Grace and Raineir III, Prince of Monaco. Barber's Adagio for Strings can also be found in movies like Platoon, The Elephant Man, S1m0ne, Lorenzo's Oil, El Norte (1984), The Scarlet Letter, and Amélie.
Barber's Adagio for Strings (String Quartet No. 1, mvmt. 2, Op. 11) was composed in Rome in 1936, originally as a string quartet. Nearly two years after its publication, the Adagio for Strings was arranged for string orchestra. And in 1967, Barber arranged it again for choir, setting it to the Agnus Dei text after receiving many requests to do so. Barber's Adagio for Strings was an instant "hit". Audiences all over the world couldn't get enough. At the work's premier in Kiev, Russia in 1945, the audience would not leave the hall until the conductor, Stokowski, encored it. Barber certainly established himself as a great American composer in the early modern world with this piece of music.
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