It was Schopenhauer who first said that all arts aspire to the condition of music. What he was referring to was the abstract qualities of music. The path between music and audience is a direct one, without the intervention of a medium of communication that is used for other everyday purposes, which is unlike many other art forms! The architect expresses himself in buildings, which have some utilitarian purpose. The poet uses words, which we use on a daily basis in conversation. The painter usually expresses himself by representing what he sees i.e. the visible world. Only the composer of music is perfectly free to create a work of art out of his own consciousness, which performs no function, other than to please.

A testimony to the mystical nature of music is the unknown Polish classical composer whos Symphony of Sorrowful Songs sold more than pop icon, Madonna, in the year it was released and more than any other classical composer in the entire history of the world! However, this remarkable achievement only occurred 17-years after he composed it.

Polish Composer in Translation

The composers name is Henryk Gorecki and his success is nothing short of a miracle. When he wrote the symphony (his 3rd) in 1976, he and his wife were declared non-persons under the communist regime and their passports were confiscated. His name was unknown, and according to records in Poland, he did not even exist. Gorecki had been born in Czernica, in the coal-mining belt of Silesia on The Czechoslovakian border. It is 20-minutes from the town Oswiecim, which the Germans would later name Auschwitz. This piece of music was so inspired, as to be a warning to future generations and to bear witness to what had occurred there. Corecki commented: The fact that 17 years later, it seems young people all over the world have heard what I said, and understood: that my warning will not go forgotten into the world.

Beauty and hope are firmly embedded in this piece of music that is played by taxi drivers and royalty alike. 300 000 copies were sold worldwide when it was released, unheard of for a classical piece which would hopefully sell 10 to 20.000 copies in a lifetime, and thats about it.

A Symphony of International Value

The road to fame of the Symphony of Sorrowful Songs is an interesting one. 1976, the year it was composed saw the first performance in a Paris concert hall. After the performance a music critic whispered Merde! into Gorecks ear. The first recorded version appeared in Britain in 1987, and was basically ignored by the classical music magazines. In 1989, the piece reappeared; this time in concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, after the London Sinfonietta decided to champion Goreckis work.

Bob Hurwitz, head of Warners Elektra Nonesuch label decided to attain the symphony for his label. In 1990, Hurwitz recorded it with the London Sinfonietta using young American conductor David Zinmaan and the soprano Dawn Upshaw. In September 1992, classic FM, Britains first commercial classical music station was launched and picked Goreckis symphony as the stations first classic sure thing. In October that year a sudden demand caused chart sponsors W H Smith to stock the symphony. In November BBC Radios 3 and 4 followed, then Radio 2, and finally, DJ Simon Bates on Radio 1.

A Multicultural Moment

January 1993 was a watershed moment for 'Symphony of Sorrows' as the album jumped from 71 to 27 in the Music Week pop charts. In February that year Gorecki received a gold disc for sales of 100,000.

Fascinating to think that a symphony, 54-minutes long, scored for a large string orchestra, would climb so high up the charts and sell more than a contemporary musical legend. It is a true testament to the universal language of music, the genius that lies in certain compositions and the infinite power of music to move people.