Symphony #3

Product Details

Binding : Audio CD
EAN : 0075597928228
Label : Nonesuch
Number of Discs : 1
Product Group : Music
Release Date : 1992-05-19
UPC : 075597928228

ASIN : B000005J1C

Track Listings for

Disc-1
1. Symphony No. 3 Op. 36 (1976): I. Lento - Sostenuto Tranquillo Ma Cantabile
2. Symphony No. 3 Op. 36 (1976): II. Lento e Largo - Tranquillissimo
3. Symphony No. 3 Op. 36 (1976): III. Lento - Cantabile Semplice

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Editorial Reviews

From Amazon.co.uk

This album, which catapulted Polish composer Henryk Górecki to into the international spotlight, takes texts born in pain and turns them into statements of affirmation through the use of music that ebbs and flows in mystic minimalism. The clear voice of soprano Dawn Upshaw, singing the Polish texts, is a large part of the success of this particular recording, but the music, contemporary without either dissonance or movie-music mawkishness, clarifies and uplifts the words. This is a moving and essential element of the modern repertoire. --Sarah Bryan Miller

Amazon.com essential recording

This album, which catapulted Polish composer Henryk Gorecki to into the international spotlight, takes texts born in pain and turns them into statements of affirmation through the use of music that ebbs and flows in mystic minimalism. The clear voice of soprano Dawn Upshaw, singing the Polish texts, is a large part of the success of this particular recording, but the music, contemporary without either dissonance or movie-music mawkishness, clarifies and uplifts the words. This is a moving and essential element of the modern repertoire. --Sarah Bryan Miller

Customer Reviews

What Requiem should have been (2004-07-11)

Electra Nonsuch, a division of Warner Communications, released a CD several years ago of such power, reverence and intensity that it deserves a second look in 2004. The CD, Henryk Górecki's Symphony No. 3 in three parts is consistent in its elegance and somber tone throughout. Composed in 1976 in the small town of Katowice, the Symphony take us through the account of what occurred in another small town outside Katowice, named OSwiecim, better known to the world as Auschwitz. As the name would suggest, the Symphony evokes images of long human suffering, endurance and ultimately salvation from the human condition of a Nazi concentration camp. Nothing cheery here. But there is something uplifting, too; from the moment the first movement begins: "Lento - Sostenuto Tranquillo MA Cantabile", when the almost imperceptible dual bass introduces us to the canon that follows, the slow tempo and evocative dull cadence like the slow beat of a fading heart, one senses the mood will evolve and elevate, and it does, gradually, through a spiritual second movement - "Lento E Largo - Tranquillissimo" in stages until the soprano, Dawn Upshaw, begins her imprisoned prayers and carries us to affirmation in the final and third movement, "Lento - Cantabile Semplice". The words are prayers inscribed on the walls of the cells inside Auschwitz: "18-years old, imprisoned since 26 September 1944". This simple statement of fact, says it all. Symphony No. 3 is, in an odd way, sensual and very personal in the way that music speaks to the soul and what is in our hearts. You play this CD when you are ready to meditate and relax, or when you are with someone you care about and want to hold them close. No words need to be said, the music speaks its own language here. Verdi came close to this with his Requiem, but didn't sustain the mood. Górecki sustains the mood and never deviates or disrupts the spirituality of the tone he creates. Immediately after I listened to this CD I went to my cabinet and took out John William's equally evocative and reverential "Saving Private Ryan". The two should be played one after the other, in the order recommended. There are similarities in the two that make the match a good one.

an emotional masterwork (2004-06-27)

I'm a huge fan of Dawn Upshaw and bought this CD without knowing anything about it. I'll admit that I wasn't blown away by it - at first. I thought: what is this? However, I found myself drawn to it again and again. Now I find myself becoming increasingly emotional while listening to it. It's very affecting music. Upshaw's voice seems a gift from Heaven. Buy it - listen to it - give it an opportunity to soak in - you'll come to cherish it. I did.

Minimal and intensely moving (2004-06-25)

When this recording emerged in the early 1990's, it not only shot to the top of the classical charts, but to the top of some pop charts as well, an unusual phenomenon. It's not hard to see why; the composer's simple, but eloquent language here speaks to many types of listeners, even those who might not usually listen to so-called "serious" classical music.

The symphony is in three slow-moving sections, all labeled "Lento" and with heartbreaking texts. As a sample, here are the words to the second movement, based on a message found scrawled on a Gestapo prison cell wall in 1944 by an 18-year-old girl:

No, Mother, do not weep,Most chaste Queen of HeavenHelp me always.Hail Mary.

The music accompanying these sometimes agonizingly sad words is shining, gleaming, radiant -- transforming what could be heard as unremitting despair into something more spiritually uplifting. Dawn Upshaw, singing in Polish, sounds gorgeous here, with the simple purity of her voice adding a great deal to David Zinman's unforced interpretation of the work. The renowned London Sinfonietta plays with a delicacy that suits the music, and the recording quality allows all this transparent peacefulness to shine through.

Those familiar with Arvo Pärt or John Tavener's slow-moving, spiritual style should find this work quite rewarding. (Note to prospective Gorecki fans: his style is eclectic, and not all of his work is as placid as this piece.)

Incredible (2004-04-19)

When I first picked out this CD at a local library, I thought I was being very brave. I had never heard of Henryk Gorecki, and his symphony was dated from 1976. I prepared to listen to some really strange avant garde music, and after hearing the basses and cellos "drone on" for 5 minutes, I thought this was minimalism at its worst. I decided to be patient enough to finish listening to the first movement. I found myself listening to the rest of the entire symphony, wanting to hear it again.Although(and because) it is extremely slow and repetitious, this symphony will have a memorable effect on you the first time you listen to it. Unlike other music which you have to listen to several times before you come to enjoy it, this piece will immediately get to you. It is so different from any music I have ever heard, yet so easy to understand. Also, the soprano sings Polish, which I think is the perfect language to use for this symphony. It fits the mood of the music perfectly, and is penetrating due to its beautiful use of consonants.I proudly recommend this music to everyone who is willing to listen to a new kind of music, and say that if this symphony indeed crosses my boundaries of musical tolerance by employing minimalism and tone clusters, it is a grand exception.

Emotionally heartwrenching! (2004-03-01)

I first heard this music on NPR and sat at my desk at work weeping. I called the station and they told me they always received the most calls after they played it from people like me yearning to purchase it. I did just that and never tire of it. I can feel my heart stretching in anguish and sorrow for those that suffered through the horrible times of the holocaust. This is one of the most perfect pieces of music-one that can touch your soul and make you feel pain and redemption at the same time.

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