“I consider it a very special piece. I always empathise with its performance,” says Krzysztof Penderecki in an article by Beata Bolesławska-Lewandowska.
It all began with Lacrimosa, a several-minute-long lament for a soprano voice, choir, and orchestra, which Krzysztof Penderecki composed on the request of Lech Wa³êsa. The work was presented on 16th December 1980 in Gdañsk at the unveiling of the monument to the shipyard workers murdered 10 years earlier by communists. Asked about the world premiere, the composer reminisces: “It was an extraordinary experience. The concert, or rather the playing of the recording of my piece was just a small part of the ceremony.