Composer

:

Samuel Barber

Genre

:

Vocal

Style

:

Vocal Music

Compose Date

:

1936

Average_duration

:

2:05

Samuel Barber's "The Beggar's Song" is a vocal work for baritone and piano, composed in 1940. The piece was premiered on January 10, 1941, at the Town Hall in New York City, with the composer himself at the piano and the baritone John Gurney as the soloist. "The Beggar's Song" is a setting of a poem by W.H. Auden, which tells the story of a beggar who sings a song to a passerby, asking for alms. The song is a lament for the beggar's lost youth and beauty, and a plea for mercy and compassion from the listener. The piece is divided into three movements, each of which corresponds to a different stanza of the poem. The first movement is marked "Moderato," and begins with a simple, plaintive melody in the piano, which is soon joined by the baritone's voice. The music is spare and melancholy, with a sense of resignation and acceptance of the beggar's fate. The second movement is marked "Allegro," and is more lively and rhythmic than the first. The piano plays a jaunty, syncopated melody, while the baritone sings a more complex and virtuosic vocal line. The music has a sense of irony and humor, as the beggar sings of his former beauty and charm, and the listener is invited to imagine him in his youth. The third movement is marked "Lento," and returns to the mood of the first. The piano plays a mournful, descending melody, while the baritone sings a long, sustained line that rises and falls with the melody. The music is full of pathos and longing, as the beggar sings of his hopelessness and despair, and begs for the listener's pity. Overall, "The Beggar's Song" is a powerful and moving work, which showcases Barber's skill as a composer of vocal music. The piece is notable for its expressive melodies, rich harmonies, and sensitive setting of the text. It remains a popular choice for baritones and pianists today, and is considered one of Barber's most important works in the genre.

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