In the mid-1970s, Krzysztof Penderecki, who in the previous decade had emerged as an icon of the daring musical avant-garde that explored new techniques and expressive devices, began to turn once more to tradition, drawing on post-Romantic forms and expression. This musical volte-face was sealed with his “Christmas” Symphony (quoting the melody of Silent Night), which astonished listeners (the world premiere took place in New York in 1980 under the baton of Zubin Mehta, to whom the work was dedicated) with an almost Brucknerian sound idiom. Commenting on the work, Maciej Negrey declared: “this symphony is a projection of its author’s idea of the world of the great Romantic symphony – the world that fascinated him”.

What is the origin of the mysterious title Life Without Christmas (Morning Prayers is the first of its four parts) of a series of musical meditations which the Georgian composer Giya Kancheli wrote over a period of more than ten years? He himself explained “I was born and grew up in a country where Christmas was not celebrated. It was only years later that I realised that for a great part of humanity it was one of the most important events in the calendar and that we, in the USSR, were deprived of this experience. So, it was not just Christmas why I decided to embrace this subject, but the lack of it”. The artist, who passed away two years ago, stressed the fact that although he was not a pious man, he was fascinated by the questions posed by the great religions. This fascination was often reflected in his works, which critics referred to as “new spiritual music”.

Alongside the works of these two great Central European contemporaries, we will also hear Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A Minor, which is one of the audience’s favourites because of its Romantic expression, nostalgic northern tone, and melodic beauty.