| Even though Samuel Barber is a well-known twentieth-century American composer, scholarly studies of his music are few. His contribution to the American stage has yet to be adequately explored, a peculiar oversight since he remains one of only three Americans to have more than one work premiered at the Metropolitan Opera. Even more curious is that there has not yet been a serious study of the opera that gained him his first Pulitzer Prize: Vanessa (1958). With a libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti, Barber's partner, and an all-star cast of singers, Vanessa was staged during two successive seasons at the Met and led to Barber's Antony and Cleopatra , commissioned for the opening of the new Met in 1966. Yet, despite the Pulitzer and critical accolades, Vanessa was dropped from the Met's repertoire.; This dissertation documents the history of Vanessa, Barber's first mature opera, from its genesis in drafts and musical sketches through its premiere and subsequent revisions. Based primarily on archival materials housed at the Library of Congress, this study includes a detailed examination of the opera's libretto, including Menotti's draft and Schirmer's two published versions. An assessment of Barber's sketches of Vanessa , the holograph piano/vocal and full scores, and the copyist's piano/vocal score with the composer's corrections, offers further insight into Barber's compositional techniques and his vision of a theatrical production. Ensuing revisions could suggest his willingness to adapt the score to accommodate not only his performers, but also his critics, especially those dissatisfied with the treatment of controversial subject matter found in the opera's plot. Rudolph Bing's motives in staging the opera during the Met's 1957--58 season and the marketing techniques used to promote the premiere are also discussed, suggesting that Vanessa was produced in response to the New York City Opera's all-American series. In addition to documenting Barber's approach to composing for the stage, as well as his collaboration with Menotti (unique in that it is a rare instance of one composer providing an original libretto for another), this study of the holograph materials serves as a model for future investigations of Barber's operatic compositions. |
