On November 15, the Opole Philharmonic will host the Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra under the baton of one of the most acclaimed conductors of the young generation, as well as the artistic director of the Silesian Philharmonic, Yaroslav Shemet, inviting the audience to a concert as part of two unique events: The 7th Eufonie International Festival of Central and Eastern European Music and the 13th International Days of Henryk Mikołaj Górecki “Songs Sing.”

The evening’s program was arranged so that the ideas of the two festivals would intermingle in a musical dialogue – from Henryk Mikołaj Górecki’s energetic Three Dances, through Mieczysław Karłowicz’s reflective Odwieczne pieśni (Eternal Songs ), to one of the most famous symphonies in history – Antonín Dvořák’ s Symphony No. 9 From the New World.

The evening will open with Three dances op. 34 Henryk Mikołaj Górecki – a work in which the composer, usually associated with music full of reverie, shows his impetuous face. Reaching back to the Polish dance tradition, he transformed its characteristic motifs into dynamic forms with great rhythmic freedom. Here, jumping rhythms and sharp accents alternate with moments of lyrical respite, creating music full of contrasts and unexpected turns.

Eternal Songs Op. 10 Mieczyslaw Karlowicz’s Song is a symphonic poem in the form of a triptych. Song of Eternal Longing, Song of Love and Death and Song of All-Being form a coherent, reflective whole, in which melancholy and reverie over human fate resound. Although the work does not have a detailed program, it was inspired, among other things, by the composer’s solitary wanderings in the Tatra Mountains and his sense of oneness with nature. Karłowicz here combines late-Romantic momentum with his characteristic lyricism, and all the movements are bound together by the eternal motif entrusted to the English cornet at the beginning.

The finale of the concert will be the most famous and most frequently performed of all Antonín Dvořák’s symphonies -. Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95 From the New World . Powstała ona w latach 1892–1893 podczas pobytu kompozytora w Stanach Zjednoczonych. Inspirował się on tamtejszą muzyką – afroamerykańskimi spirituals i motywami indiańskimi – jednak nie cytował ich dosłownie, tworząc własne tematy o podobnym charakterze. Środkowe części powstały pod wpływem poematu Henry’ego Wadswortha Longfellowa Pieśń o Hiawathcie. Cztery ogniwa symfonii prowadzą słuchacza od energicznego Adagio. Allegro molto, przez liryczne Largo i taneczne Scherzo: Molto vivace, po finał Allegro con fuoco, w którym powracają echa wcześniejszych tematów. Dzieło łączy czeską melodykę z amerykańskimi inspiracjami, zachowując klarowną formę i bogactwo orkiestracyjnych barw.

PROGRAMME:

Henryk Mikołaj Górecki (1933–2010)

Three dances op. 34 [12’]
for orchestra
(1973)

Presto, marcatissimo
Andante cantabile. Tranquillo
Presto

Mieczysław Karłowicz (1876–1909)

Eternal songs op. 34 10 [22’]
symphonic poem
(1906)

Song of Eternal Longing
Song of Love and Death
Song of Universal Existence

*** intermission [20’]

Antonin Dvořák (1841–1904)
IX Symfonia e-moll Z Nowego Świata op. 34 95 [40’]
(1893)

Adagio. Allegro molto
Largo
Molto vivace
Allegro con fuoco

PERFORMERS:

Silesian Philharmonic Choir and Symphony Orchestra

Yaroslav Shemet
conductor

Jarosław Wolanin
artistic director of the choir