Krzysztof Penderecki's St. Luke Passion of 1966 wasn't a success when it premiered at the opening of a rebuilt cathedral in West Germany. The Western avant-garde was scandalized by Penderecki's use of pure tonality, to represent religious concepts, at that. Official Polish Communism had problems with the idea of a St. Luke Passion in general, and with an explicitly devotional one like Penderecki's specifically. Over time, the work has emerged as one of Penderecki's greatest, perhaps as the beginning of his move back toward ...
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Krzysztof Penderecki's St. Luke Passion of 1966 wasn't a success when it premiered at the opening of a rebuilt cathedral in West Germany. The Western avant-garde was scandalized by Penderecki's use of pure tonality, to represent religious concepts, at that. Official Polish Communism had problems with the idea of a St. Luke Passion in general, and with an explicitly devotional one like Penderecki's specifically. Over time, the work has emerged as one of Penderecki's greatest, perhaps as the beginning of his move back toward traditional, accessible styles, and perhaps as something even deeper: a work that bridges avant-garde and traditional impulses. The St. Luke Passion uses serialism, quarter tones, and a variety of extended choral techniques and textures such as howling, chattering, and giggling, all in an exceptionally vivid rendering of the Passion text. In addition to the aforementioned tonal chords, it also retains many of the conventions of the Bach Passions, and even uses a B-A-C-H motif whose...
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