English Deutsch After musical studies in Rybnik and Katowice, HM Górecki’s compositions first made their mark in the mid-1950s when he found himself at the forefront of the Polish avant-garde at the time of the post-Stalin cultural thaw. His early works show a clear development from the folk-influenced worlds of Szymanowski and Bartók in the
Four Preludes for piano (1955) and
Songs of Joy and Rhythm (1956) to the modernist techniques of Webern and Boulez in
Epitafium (1958) and
Symphony No.1 (1959), both premiered at the Warsaw Autumn Festival. During the 1960s Górecki continued in a radical direction in the
Genesis (1962-63) and
Muzyczka (1967-70) cycles of works, whilst paring down his compositional material and exploring the folk music traditions of his beloved Tatra region in such works as
Three Pieces in Old Style (1963) and
Muzyka staropolska (Old Polish Music) (1967-69).
The simple yet monumental style for which Górecki is today renowned became fully established in the 1970s with such works as
Symphony No.2 'Copernican' (1972), the much lauded
Symphony No.3 'Symphony of Sorrowful Songs' (1976) and the large-scale Psalm setting for chorus and orchestra
Beatus Vir (1979). With his withdrawl from public life due to political and health pressures, the early ‘80s saw Górecki concentrating on choral settings and chamber music, including his trio
Recitatives and Ariosos 'Lerchenmusik' (1984-85).
As a result of Poland's increasing political emancipation in the late 1980s, Górecki's music travelled more widely and attracted new performers and audiences in the West. This renewed interest led to the composition of three major string quartets,
Already it is Dusk (1988),
Quasi una fantasia (1991) and
...songs are sung (1995), commissioned for the Kronos Quartet. His music is today performed throughout the world including Górecki features at numerous international festivals, many choreographies to his music, and a series of highly successful recordings on the Nonesuch label.
Górecki's most noted compositions of the 1990s included
Concerto-Cantata (1992) for flute and orchestra and
Kleines Requiem für eine Polka (1993) recorded by both the Schoenberg Ensemble on Philips and the London Sinfonietta on Nonesuch. Most recently Górecki has completed two new choral works,
Salve, Sidus Polonorum (1997-2000) for chorus, percussion and keyboards, and
Lobgesang (2000) for chorus and glockenspiel.
Henryk Mikolaj Gorecki is published by Boosey & Hawkes.
February 2007
Erhard Grosskopf
