Editing Samuel Barber (section)

===Childhood (1910–1923)===
[[File:SamBarberWChesterPA.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|Childhood home of Samuel Barber in West Chester, Pennsylvania]]

Barber was born in [[West Chester, Pennsylvania]], the son of Marguerite McLeod (née Beatty) and Samuel Le Roy Barber.{{sfn|Broder|1985|pp=9–10}} He was born into a comfortable, educated, social, and distinguished American family. His father was a physician; his mother was a pianist of English-Scottish-Irish descent whose family had lived in the United States since the time of the [[American Revolutionary War]].{{sfn|Heyman|2001}} His maternal aunt, [[Louise Homer]], was a leading [[contralto]] at the [[Metropolitan Opera]]; his uncle, [[Sidney Homer]], was a composer of American [[art song]]s. Louise Homer is known to have influenced Barber's interest in voice. Through his aunt, Barber was introduced to many great singers and songs. Sidney Homer mentored Barber for more than 25 years, and profoundly influenced his compositional aesthetics.{{sfn|Heyman|2001}}

A [[child prodigy]], Barber became profoundly interested in music at a very young age, and it was apparent that he had great musical talent and ability. He began studying the piano at the age of six and at age seven composed his first work, ''Sadness'', a 23-measure solo piano piece in C minor.<ref name="obit"/> Despite Barber's interest in music, his family wanted him to become a typical extroverted, athletic American boy. This meant, in particular, they encouraged his playing football. However, Barber was in no way a typical boy, and at the age of nine he wrote to his mother:<ref>{{Cite book|title=Great Lives From History: The 20th Century|last=Gorman|first=Robert F.|publisher=Salem Press|year=2008|isbn=9781587653452|location=Pasadena, California|page=[https://archive.org/details/greatlivesfromhi0000unse_o5s6/page/230 230]|url=https://archive.org/details/greatlivesfromhi0000unse_o5s6/page/230}}</ref>

{{blockquote|Dear Mother: I have written this to tell you my worrying secret. Now don't cry when you read it because it is neither yours nor my fault. I suppose I will have to tell it now without any nonsense. To begin with I was not meant to be an athlet {{sic}}. I was meant to be a composer, and will be I'm sure. I'll ask you one more thing.—Don't ask me to try to forget this unpleasant thing and go play football.—''Please''—Sometimes I've been worrying about this so much that it makes me mad (not very).{{sfn|Heyman|1992|p=7}}}}

At the age of 10, Barber wrote his first operetta, ''The Rose Tree'', to a libretto by the family's cook.{{sfn|Heyman|2001}} At the age of 12, he became an [[organist]] at a local church.<ref name="obit"/>