Czarnecki: Vesperæ in exaltatione Sanctæ Crucis, Op. 50

Featuring

Aleksander Kunach
Dawid Biwo
Jan Łukaszewski
Polski Chór Kameralny
Polska Filharmonia Bałtycka
Sławomir Stanisław Czarnecki

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Sławomir Czarnecki's current creative period is characterized by a postmodern synthesis, blending modernism and tradition, which he defines as 'ANALOGISM'.

Performer Biography

Jan Łukaszewski, the conductor, is considered one of Europe's leading specialists in choral music and has conducted over 660 world premieres of compositions by both Polish and foreign composers.

Composer Biography

Sławomir Czarnecki, the composer, studied composition with Professor Romuald Twardowski and Professor Piotr Perkowski in Warsaw, and later with Professor Olivier Messiaen in Paris.

Compositional Technique

The Vespers composition incorporates a specific liturgical rite from the Order of the Holy Sepulchre in Miechów, Poland, starting with their traditional prayer and ending with a Holy Week hymn fragment.

Compositional Technique

The music of the Vespers blends various techniques and aesthetics, drawing inspiration from Gregorian chant, 12th-century organum, and Renaissance Venetian polychoral style, while also using minimal music and repetitive techniques.

Instruments

The instrumental ensemble for this recording includes 2 English horns, a bassoon and contrabassoon, and 3 C trumpets and 3 trombones, chosen to emphasize an archaic and severe sound.

Composition History

Sławomir Czarnecki's Vespers for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is dedicated to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, in gratitude for his blessing and prayers.