Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings is one of the most hauntingly beautiful works in the classical canon.

Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings is one of the most hauntingly beautiful works in the classical canon, a slow, unfolding arc of emotion that has become a universal language of mourning and reflection. Since its premiere in 1938, it has been performed at moments of great collective grief, from presidential funerals to memorials for national tragedies. Leonard Bernstein’s conducting adds an even deeper resonance: a friend and admirer of Barber, Bernstein famously led the Adagio during a national broadcast following President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, a performance etched into cultural memory. As one of the most influential figures in classical music, Bernstein brought unmatched humanity to the podium, transforming the Adagio into not just a work of art, but a vessel for shared sorrow and profound connection.

Watch Leonard Bernstein at his best.

Why We Share Music from TIDAL

At WNDRFL, we curate music to inspire, connect, and spark discovery.

We share it from TIDAL because it offers lossless, high-fidelity audio, so you hear every track exactly as the artist intended, every detail, texture, and nuance intact.

TIDAL also pays artists one of the highest rates in the streaming industry, often more than double Spotify’s per-stream payout, using a user-centric payment model that directs more of each listener’s subscription to the artists they actually listen to. By embedding music from TIDAL on our site, every play not only sounds its best but also better supports the people who create it.

For us, it’s simple: better sound, fairer pay, deeper connection.