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Barber wrote this work for soprano Eleanor Steber, and dedicated it to his father, who was gravely ill at the time of its inception. The text was provided by James Agee, and takes the form of the nostalgic musings of a child. The work is in one movement, and is scored for soprano and orchestra.
The piece is significant because it is considered "the most American" of Barber's works. The text reminisces about the experience of growing up in America in the early part of this century, and Barber's music evokes that nostalgia masterfully. In addition, the text provides countless opportunities for tone painting; that is, the mirroring of sounds in the instruments of sounds that are suggested in the text.
The premiere of the work occurred on April 9th, 1947, but unfortunately, Barber was unable to attend the premiere. That night, the conductor of the work, Serge Koussevitzky, announced his retirement from music, which somewhat eclipsed the premiere of the work. Though it was met with mixed reviews at its premiere, Knoxville has persevered. There is a wonderful recording available on the Atlantic/Nonesuch label, starring soprano Dawn Upshaw and conducted by David Zinman. Among others, Leontyne Price, Evelyn Lear, Sylvia McNair and Kathleen Battle have all recorded the work as well.
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