Customer Reviews

Symphony #3

5 star:		(66)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

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 O½wiecim, 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.

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 Heaven
Help 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.)

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.

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.

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.

There are people who will hate this cd, and people who will love it. It all depends on what music is about. Personally, I bought this cd on a whim, having never heard of Gorecki and being less than fond of soprano soloists in general. If music is about technique and style and details, then perhaps you will be disappointed in this cd. If music is about touching something--a feeling, a memory, a thought--inside the listener, if music is about the expression of emotion, then listen to this cd. The words are in Polish, and I have never cared what they meant--the music means different things to me each time I hear it. Sometimes it's about loneliness, or about sadness, sometimes it's about finding the will to live on through tragedy, and sometimes it's about nothing at all. When Dawn Upshaw's voice soars in the second movement, I can close my eyes and appreciate the power of the music and her voice and that particular moment in time. Is it the greatest music ever written--probably not. But if music touches something deep inside you, isn't that what greatness is about?

not saying anything much about this music, plenty has been said on that, but if the classical music industry would open its eyes and look at the way this living composer's music was marketed and promoted then perhaps the seemingly imminent death of classical music wouldnt seem so predictably intevitable

From the opening strings to the coda you journey through an emotional landscape. Really one of the best symphonies of the last 100 years.

okay.
i profess a love for dawn upshaws voice, but it is better served elsewhere, most notable in her berlin cabaret songs.
gorecki's third however is thin stuff indeed.
schoenberg made a more profound statement on the same subject matter in about a third of the time.
unfortunately gorecki must be ranked with arvo part and phillip glass as composers who predictably reached a popular nerve with politically correct banality.

Ahhhh Gorecki! Ahhh Upshaw! The musical marriage of these two talents provides us the first true napper's delight. This disc is rarely far away from the player in my listening room, "The Womb," and has yet to provide a restful sleep. I think the furthest I've ever made it through the first movement was 4:12, and that was only because the phone rang around 2:16 and it took me almost a full two minutes to recover and be lulled away.

Some nappers may be shocked at the rather short playing time of this disc, but in this day and age of programmable CD players, just hit "repeat" and sleep away the afternoon! Ahhhh! Bliss!

Robert Lewis