Turning History into Avant-garde
“I did not live in easy times,” says Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki in this rare interview. Having witnessed Auschwitz and the Stalin-period in the 1950’s, Penderecki
Turning History into Avant-garde
“I did not live in easy times,” says Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki in this rare interview. Having witnessed Auschwitz and the Stalin-period in the 1950’s, Penderecki explains: “I had to react with my music.” Read more …
Krzysztof Penderecki (b. 1933) – one of the world’s most renowned contemporary composers – visited Copenhagen for the premier of his avant-garde opera “The Devils of Loudun” at the Royal Danish Opera. Originally written at the end of the 1960’s, the opera was an outright critic of the role of the church in society, and it caused a lot of turmoil in catholic countries such as Poland, Italy and the southern parts of Germany.
Art played a vital role during a period where half of Europe was suppressed by the Communist ideology, Penderecki explains. Young artists defined themselves as being against systems and authorities. Influenced by historic events such as World War II and the occupation of Poland, the young generation of the 1950’s chose t