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This work is actually the extracted second movement of Barber's String Quartet Op. 11, rearranged for string orchestra. Barber did the arrangement with the notion that Arturo Toscanini would remember him, and would consider performing it. The composer sent the scores of the Adagio and his Essay Op. 12 to Toscanini, and waited for a reply. He got none, and the scores were later returned to him without comment: it turns out that Toscanini had memorized them, and he didn't ask to see the scores again until a day before the first rehearsal. The premiere of the two works was a huge success, and that success helped "heal" the grudge Barber had held against the master conductor for not replying to his submissions. Toscanini took the works on tour to South America, and Samuel Barber became an international name. There was some debate over Toscanini's choice of such a "conservative" representative of American music, but Barber was used to that sort of criticism; besides, he was happy with the way things were going!
Modern audiences are probably most familiar with this work because of its appearance in movie soundtracks. Notable among these is the soundtrack for the movie Platoon, about the U. S. involvement in the Vietnam War, directed by Oliver Stone. This movie won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1987. The Adagio was also used on the soundtracks of David Lynch's The Elephant Man (1980, nominated for Best Picture, 1981), and Lorenzo's Oil (1992, nominated Best Screenplay, 1993), directed by George Miller.
There are countless recordings of this works available. In addition to being one of the "greatest hits" on countless compilations, just about every modern conductor with "superstar" status has recorded it: one need only to choose their favorite. Recommended conductors include Herbert von Karajan, Leonard Bernstein, and Robert Shaw, who recorded the arrangement of the Adagio for chorus, which utilizes the Agnus Dei from the Latin Mass as text.
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