Barber, Samuel

US composer. He worked in a neoclassical, astringent style. Compositions include Adagio for Strings (1936) and the opera Vanessa (1958), which won one of his two Pulitzer Prizes. Another opera, Antony and Cleopatra (1966), was commissioned for the opening of the new Metropolitan Opera House at the Lincoln Center, New York City. Owing to an over-elaborate staging the opera was a failure at its premiere, although it had some success in a revised version in 1974. Barber's music is lyrical and fastidiously worked. His later works include The Lovers (1971).