The Society of Friends of the John Paul II Foundation in Warsaw invites everyone to a solemn concert of choral music on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the inauguration of the pontificate of John Paul II, which will take place on October 23, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. at the Warsaw Philharmonic.

The election of Cardinal Karol Wojtyła as Pope in October 1978 occasioned a great number of music works celebrating this pontificate. The programme of the October concert consists of pieces that illustrates the diversity of religious music in Poland over the last more than 120 years. Henryk Mikołaj Górecki’s Sacred Songs, some of which were written in the mid-1980s, emanate a specific kind of simplicity. Krzysztof Penderecki’s Missa brevis, completed in 2012, is very different from his monumental vocal‑instrumental frescos. It is simple and delicate, suitable for both a children’s and a men’s choir. Charles Ives’s Psalms (from the turn of the 19th century) feature, apart from vocal parts, also the organ, bells and percussion. The Latvian composer Rihards Dubra’s Te Deum is scored for similar forces, enriched by the addition of a horn and a saxophone.

The works will be performed by the Warsaw Philharmonic Choir, Artos Children's Choir and musicians of the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Bartosz Michałowski. We will also hear organists Emanuel Bączkowski and Jakub Pankowiak.

More information available at: http://filharmonia.pl