On 25 March 2018 at 7.00 p.m. the Church of the First Polish Martyrs will host the oratorio concert "Music and the Sacrum", during which Stabat Mater for soprano, alt, baritone, mixed choir and orchestra op. 53 by Karol Szymanowski will be performed.

The Stabat Mater sequence comes from the XIII century and for a long time was part of the liturgical canon. It refers to one of the most important events for the Christian faith – the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on the Hill of Calvary, and its main theme is the despair of the Mother – Mary – over the fate of her beloved Son. This subject, included in the framework of medieval poetry, in later epochs became a source of inexhaustible inspiration for poets, painters and, finally, composers; thanks to this, apart from the religious context, it acquired deeply humanistic, universal features.

Karol Szymanowski became interested in the medieval sequence in the interwar period. His cantata Stabat Mater for three soloists, mixed choir and orchestra (1926), to the text of contemporary Polish translator Józef Jankowski, is an extremely original composition, if only due to the influence of highlander folklore and archaizations, which subtly imprint the impressionistic tissue of the work. It also carries a very strong load of expression, and at the same time, thanks to the simplicity of the means of expression and transparency of the texture, it favors the concentration of the listener and contemplation.

The work will be performed by the Gorzów Philharmonic Orchestra and the Choir of the Maritime University in Szczecin under the direction of Jacek Kraszewski. Barbara Żarnowiecka (soprano), Ewa Marciniec (alt), Jarosław Bręk (baritone) will perform as soloists.

Admission to the concert is free.

Additional information at: www.filharmoniagorzowska.pl