HENRYK GÓRECKI

HENRYK GÓRECKI
SYMPHONY No.3 - THREE OLDEN STYLE PIECES (1993)
POLISH NATIONAL RADIO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA - ANTONI WIT
320 KBPS

Any recording of Gorecki's Third Symphony is going to have to come up against the Nonesuch release with the London Sinfonietta and Dawn Upshaw as Soprano for comparison. This one not only stands the test but is the better recording.It shows a greater understanding of the piece, delves deeper into it and is astonishingly well performed. The Symphony is both a meditation on Poland's sufferings in the second world war and a love letter from the composer to his wife. Both of these theme's are expressed in this recording. Each of the three movements - all in slow tempo's, has an accompanying poem sung by soprano. Whilst the Orchestra dominates the first movement the vocal part is of equal importance to it in the second and third movements.
In the first movement the strings gradually pull the piece out of the depths into the light. Finally, 18 minutes in, the music takes flight with the entry of the soprano before gently subsiding. In the second movement the soprano Zofia Kilanowicz really comes into her own. In the Third movement the strings coalesce into an esctatic lapping of waves on a shore, while the voice flys above them. This is one of the best performances by strings I have ever heard, the textures they create are simply phenomenal. Zofia Kilanowicz proves herself to be a top class singer whose interpretation feels exactly right.
If you havent heard this before are there any comparisons ? Although Gorecki has been lumped in with other 'Holy minimalists' his music is far richer than Arvo Part's and more deeply felt than John Tavener's. Some signposts would be (especialy for the first movement) The best of Elgar's string music and Metamorphosen by Richard Strauss. This work would also appeal to all lovers of Ralph Vaughan Williams Variations on a Theme by Thomas Tallis and his Third (Pastoral) Symphony.
The 3 Olden Style Pieces are in a similar vein to the symphony and while they make a good filler you may find yourself stopping the CD after the symphony. It is enough in itself.

Symphony No.3, Op.36 (Symphony of Sorrowful Songs)

1. Lento-Sostenuto tranquillo ma cantabile
2. Lento-e largo-Tranquillisimo
3. Lento-Cantabile semplice
3 Olden Style Pieces

4. I
5. II
6. III

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