Composer

:

Samuel Barber

Genre

:

Choral

Style

:

Agnus Dei

Compose Date

:

1967

Average_duration

:

8:09

Agnus Dei, Op. 11 is a choral arrangement of Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings, which was originally composed in 1936. Barber arranged the piece for a cappella choir in 1967, and it was premiered by the Choir of King's College, Cambridge, in 1968. The piece is a setting of the Latin text of the Agnus Dei, which is part of the Catholic Mass. The text translates to "Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us." The piece is divided into three movements, each of which corresponds to a different section of the text. The first movement is a setting of the words "Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi" ("Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world"). The music is slow and mournful, with the choir singing in unison for much of the movement. The harmonies are simple and mostly diatonic, with occasional dissonances that add to the sense of sadness and longing. The second movement sets the words "Miserere nobis" ("have mercy on us"). The music is more complex than the first movement, with the choir singing in four-part harmony. The harmonies are still mostly diatonic, but there are more chromatic passages that add tension and drama to the music. The final movement sets the words "Dona nobis pacem" ("grant us peace"). The music is more hopeful than the previous movements, with the choir singing in a major key and the harmonies becoming more consonant. The music builds to a climax before subsiding into a peaceful conclusion. Overall, Agnus Dei, Op. 11 is a powerful and emotional piece of music that showcases Barber's skill as a composer. The choral arrangement of the Adagio for Strings adds a new dimension to the music, and the setting of the Agnus Dei text gives the piece a spiritual and religious significance.

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