Barab, Seymour

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Barab, Seymour

Barab, Seymour, American cellist and composer; b. Chicago, Jan. 9, 1921. He studied with Persichetti, Volpe, Varese, and Harrison. He played in the Indianapolis Sym. Orch., the Cleveland Orch., the CBS Sym. Orch., the Portland (Ore.) Sym. Orch., the San Francisco Sym., the ABC Sym. Orch., and the Brooklyn Philharmonia; also played in the Galimir String Quartet, the N.Y. Pro Musica, the N.Y. Trio, the New Music Quartet, and the Composers Quartet. He served on the faculties of Black Mountain Coll., Rutgers, the State Univ. of N.J., and the New England Cons, of Music in Boston. As a cellist, Barab commissioned and premiered scores by several American composers. His own large output includes three full-length operas: Phillips Marshall, Mortals, and A Piece of String; 25 one-act operas; Concerto Grosso for Orch.; Tales of Rhyme and Reason for Orch.; Cello Concerto; Concertino for Alto Saxophone and Orch.; Wind Quintet; Quartet for Saxophones; four string quartets; five piano trios; Trio for Flute, Viola, and Harp; choral works; numerous songs.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire