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Penderecki: St. Luke Passion / Wit, Warsaw National, Et Al


Release Date: 01/20/2004 
Label:  Naxos   Catalog #: 8557149   Spars Code: DDD 
Composer:  Krzysztof Penderecki
Performer:  Jaroslaw MalanowiczAdam KruszewskiIzabella KlosinskaRomuald Tesarowicz
Conductor:  Antoni Wit
Orchestra/Ensemble:  Warsaw Philharmonic OrchestraWarsaw Philharmonic ChorusWarsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra,   ... 
Number of Discs: 1 
Recorded in: Stereo 
Length: 1 Hours 16 Mins. 

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Notes and Editorial Reviews


Penderecki's gripping St. Luke Passion (1966) takes the Passions of Bach as its models, refashioning them in an unrelentingly modernist 20th-century language. The boldly original choral writing (including such astonishing voicings as the Tibetan monk-like growling that features throughout the work) and visceral orchestral effects powerfully relay the grandeur and tragedy of the Crucifixion story. However, it's not necessary to be a believer to experience Penderecki's work, as the St. Luke Passion can be greatly enjoyed for its purely musical merits.


Much of the orchestral style will be recognizable to anyone familiar with late-20th-century cinema: the otherworldly brass
Read more clusters in "Et viri, qui tenebant illum" would later turn up in John Williams' score for Close Encounters of the Third Kind, while "Comprehendentes autem cum" features a nerve-wracking string-twittering effect that has been adopted for many a scene depicting threatening rodents or insects. Interestingly, one of the most memorable sections of the St. Luke Passion is its quietest--the a cappella choral Stabat Mater, which slowly builds its dissonant tension only to be released in an unexpected yet seemingly inevitable D major chord.


Conductor Antoni Wit leads a stirring rendition aided by impassioned solo performances (with Izabella Klosinska and Romuald Tesarowicz especially memorable), while the Warsaw National Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra give fully committed realizations of this masterpiece. Naxos' clear, spacious recording delivers it all with powerful, realistic impact. Magnificent! [5/3/2004]
--Victor Carr Jr, ClassicsToday.com Read less

Works on This Recording

1. Passio et mors domini nostri Jesu Christi secundum Lucam "Saint Luke Passion" by Krzysztof Penderecki
Performer:  Jaroslaw Malanowicz (Organ), Adam Kruszewski (Baritone), Izabella Klosinska (Soprano),
Romuald Tesarowicz (Bass)
Conductor:  Antoni Wit
Orchestra/Ensemble:  Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra,  Warsaw Philharmonic Chorus,  Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra  ... 
Period: 20th Century 
Written: 1963-1966; Poland 
Venue:  Warsaw Philharmonic Hall 
Length: 63 Minutes 57 Secs. 

Sound Samples

St. Luke Passion: Part I: O Crux ave (Hymn 'Vexilla Regis prodeunt')
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Et egressus (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Deus meus (Psalm 21)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Domine, quis habitabit (Psalms 14, 4 & 15)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Adhuc eo loquente (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Ierusalem (Lamentation of Jeremiah)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Ut quid, Domine (Psalm 9)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Comprehendentes autem eum (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Iudica me, Deus (Psalm 42)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Et viri, qui tenebant illum (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Ierusalem (Lamentation of Jeremiah)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Miserere mei, Deus (Psalm 55)
St. Luke Passion: Part I: Et surgens omnis (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Et in pulverem (Psalm 21)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Et baiulans sibi crucem (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Popule meus (Improperia)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Ibi crucifixerunt eum (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Crux fidelis (Antiphons from 'Pange lingua')
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Dividentes vero (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: ...in pulverem mortis (Psalm 21)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Et stabat populus (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Unus autem (St. Luke)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Stabant autem iuxta crucem (St. John)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Stabat Mater (Sequence)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Erat autem fere hora sexta (St. Luke, St. John)
St. Luke Passion: Part II: Alla breve
St. Luke Passion: Part II: In pulverem mortis... / In te, Domine, speravi (Psalm 30)

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