Penderecki Conducts Penderecki/Warsaw Philharmonic is the first record from the brand new series. It includes composer's first studio recording with the Choir and Orchestra of the Polish National Philharmonic. It is at the same time the international phonographic premiere of of one of Krzysztof Penderecki's latest compositions – Dies Illa. The album also contains a new interpretation of one of the pieces which launched the composer's worldwide career – Psalms of David, as well as two other compositions – Hymn to St. Daniil and Hymn to St. Adalbert. Apart from musicians from the Warsaw Philharmonic, the recording also features excellent soloists – Johanna Rusanen (soprano), Agnieszka Rehlis (mezzo-soprano), and Nikolay Didenko (bass).
Dies Illa (2014) is dedicated to the victims of the First World War. In his portrayal of the Great War, which to many marked the beginning of the 20th century and the era referred to as modernity, Penderecki employs a Latin text used during Tridentine funeral masses.
Hymn to St. Daniil (1997) was commissioned by the private Russian tv station TV-6, which requested Penderecki to compose a piece to commemorate the 850th anniversary of the foundation of Moscow. Tsar Alexander Nevsky's youngest son was responsible for the fortification of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, and we can still admire the Danilov Monastery – erected by the protagonist of Penderecki's composition, in the honour of his patron, to this day. The Knyaz was buried there; nowadays, it serves as the official residence of the Patriarch of Moscow.
The orchestra is used economically, but its role is carefully thought out. The choir is mainly supported by the brass including trumpets placed in the audience, double basses and a percussion ensemble – the description on the website Trzejkompozytorzy.pl says.
Hymn to St. Adalbert (1997) is another composition dedicated to a saint patron of a city, this time St. Adalbert, associated with Gdańsk.
The instrumental parts support and complement the voices. The specific sound aura of the piece is brought out by the arrangement of two horns and two trumpets im Saal (in the sacred space), but the decisive factor is the nearly modal, minor-key harmony – we read on Trzejkompozytorzy.pl.
Psalms of David (1958), the final track on the album, is Penderecki's first composition relating to religious themes; the lyrics were sourced from David's Psalter (1579) by Jan Kochanowski. The piece features a mixed choir, percussion, and string instruments (in a percussion-like arrangement).
The four parts, with contrasting textures, make use of 12-note material, frequently organised in accordance with the rules of early classical counterpoint. In this way, old techniques are combined with new atonality and punctualism. (Trzejkompozytorzy.pl.)