Los Angeles Philharmonic performs Gorecki's famous Symphony No. 3 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall
Symphony No. 3 - also known as the
Symphony of Sorrowful Songs as the Polish composer subtitled his 54-minute score - will be performed 3 times by the Los Angeles Philharmonic under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel, artistic director, and soloist Jessica Rivera (soprano).
The Third Symphony written in 1976 for orchestra and solo soprano by
Henryk Mikolaj Gorecki, is a symphony in three movements. It sets texts of lamentation. The first Polish performance was in 1977 at the
"Warsaw Autumn" festival, sparking huge excitement and soon becoming a worldwide success. Listeners were disoriented. It provoked controversy in audiences and critics: some saw it as a masterpiece, others saw it as a manifestation of the composer's creative impotence. In comparison with his earlier works, the work is indicative of the transition between Górecki's dissonant earlier manner and his more tonal later style. Nonetheless, all were moved by the simplicity of the musical language, and the Symphony is still considered one of the best known pieces of contemporary music.
Górecki studied music studies at the Music Academy in Katowice, where he later taught. He quickly became a star in the post-war Polish avant garde, however, with premieres at Warsaw Autumn festivals. His early style was tough and often abrasive, but in the late 1960s he began moving towards a more reflective and modal music, influenced by peasant and liturgical devotional music. With its surface simplicity and consonant consolations, his Symphony No. 3 shocked audiences that were expecting something modernist at its premiere in 1976. His later music continued this interest in large-scale forms and modality, along with allusions to earlier music.
The concerts are held at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on May 26, 28, 29, 2011.
The programme also includes Symphony No. 3 by Johannes Brahms.
Source: polmic.pl