Henryk Górecki

Edit
Lifespan:
December 6, 1933 - November 12, 2010, he died aged 76 and was Polish.
Names:
Birthname: Henryk Mikołaj Górecki. Alternative names: The Great Gorecki.
Snapshot:
Credited 17 times on others' music. 17 collaborations.

Biography

Edit

Henryk Mikołaj Górecki (born December 6, 1933 in Czernica, Silesia, Poland) is a composer of contemporary classical music. Górecki studied at the State Higher School of Music in Katowice between 1955 and 1960. In 1968, he joined the faculty and rose to provost before resigning in 1979. Górecki became a leading figure of the Polish avant-garde during the post-Stalin cultural thaw. His Webernian-influenced serialist works of the 1950s and 1960s were characterized by an adherence to dissonant modernism, and drew influence from Luigi Nono, Karlheinz Stockhausen Krzysztof Penderecki and Kazimierz Serocki. He continued in this direction throughout the 1960s, but by the mid 1970s had changed to a less complex sacred minimalist sound, exemplified by the transitional Symphony No. 2 and the hugely popular Symphony No. 3 (Symphony of Sorrowful Songs). This later style has since developed during several other distinct phases; from such works his 1979 Beatus Vir and his recent requiem Good Night.

Until 1992, Górecki was viewed as a remote and fiery figure known only to a few connoisseurs, primarily as one of a number of composers responsible for sparking a postwar renaissance in Polish music. In 1992, 15 years after it was composed, a recording of his Third Symphony, Symphony of Sorrowful Songs—recorded with soprano Dawn Upshaw and released to commemorate the memory of those lost during the Holocaust—became a worldwide commercial and critical success, selling more than a million copies and vastly exceeding the typical lifetime sales of a recording of symphonic music by a 20th-century composer. As surprised as anyone at its popularity, Górecki said, "Perhaps people find something they need in this piece of music somehow I hit the right note, something they were missing. Something somewhere had been lost to them. I feel that I instinctively knew what they needed." and he has since pointedly resisted the temptation to repeat earlier success, or compose for commercial reward.

Apart from two brief periods studying in Paris and a short time living in Berlin, Górecki has spent most of his life in southern Poland. He has remained primarily a religious composer.

Genres

Chamber Music, Classical, Opera. Vote on Genres

Discography

17 releases – 17 credits on others' music Edit
1
Collaborations, Groups and Family
Edit
Henryk Górecki

Has worked with

Has been in these groups

We don't know of any. Tell us?

Has this family

We don't know of any musical relatives. Tell us?

In the News

RIP The Great Górecki

Nov, 13 2010

The Polish contemporary classical composer Henryk Górecki has died at the age of 76 after suffering from a prolonged illness, a spokeswoman for Polish Radio's National Symphony Orchestra said. Górecki is best known for his 1976 Third Symphony or "Symphony of Sorrowful Songs," a piece in three movements exploring the themes of loss in the time of war and to commemorate the memory of those lost during the holocaust. Written in 1976, the symphony garnered unlikely mainstream appeal, and has now sold over a million copies, following a 1992 re-release, climbing to No. 6 in the UK album charts, and to the top of the US classical album chart for 38 weeks. Featuring vocals from soprano Dawn Upshaw, the piece included elements as diverse as a 15th century lament, a Polish folk song and words found on a Nazi prison wall during World War II. Eugeniusz Knapik, the head of the Katowice Music Academy where Górecki spent the majority of his career, said: "Górecki's work is like a huge boulder that lies in our path and forces us to make a spiritual and emotional effort." He is survived by Jadwiga, his daughter, Anna, and son, Mikolaj.

Permalink

Fans of Henryk Górecki

Create a library Create a library!

What's this?

This section shows a summary of user libraries containing releases by this [artist|group].
By adding releases by this artist to your library (and making it public in your settings), your library will be eligible for display here.

If you're a fan of the artist, you might find it interesting to check out some of the libraries - you never know what you might find.

YouTube videos

Edit

We don't know of any videos featuring this person. Add one from YouTube?

Trivia

Edit
We don't know any trivia about this person. Add some?

Top editors for Henryk Górecki

Editor Edits
Brigid 4
Poppy Cocteau 2

View page edit history