Forty minutes worth
of Christmas Carols? If only these were
the ones to softly caress our ears as
we trawled the shops for treats: I feel
the statistical incidences of ‘bauble
rage’ in department stores during the
festive season might be reduced significantly.
Collectors who have
been gathering the excellent Naxos Lutosławski
series will of course be snapping up
this bargain without a second thought.
They will not be disappointed, as will
anyone dipping their toes into this
unusual repertoire for the first time.
The Polish Christmas
Carols were originally assembled and
arranged for solo voice and piano in
1946. The orchestrations on this recording
were made much later, being partially
premièred in 1985, and completed
by 1990. A version with texts in English
does exist, but this recording has been
made - thank goodness - with the original
Polish. There are no texts or translations
in the booklet, but they can be found
online.
As Christmas carols should be, these
are simple,
expressive songs based around the traditional
story of the nativity. Lutosławski’s
orchestrations are beautiful and sensitive,
without being in any way sentimental
or saccharine-sweet. There is a great
deal of colour and contrast here, with
an effective sound-palette which
includes harp, piano, tuned percussion
and gorgeous low winds. The harmonies
are never left entirely untouched, and
are often treated with deftly restrained
moments of dissonance which serve to
heighten the emotional effect. If you
are in the mood to let them, these subtle
pieces will take you by surprise and
bring the tears to your eyes.
The programme continues
almost seamlessly into the youthful
Lacrimosa. After a serene opening
solo, the ecstatic rise and fall of
the chorus betrays
something of the influence of Szymanowski.
This miniature is one of two settings
from a Requiem sequence which was composed
in 1937 while Lutosławski was still
a student, the second having been destroyed
during the 1944 Warsaw Uprising – a
salutary reminder that violence
and war are no respecters of art or
college homework.
The Five Songs bring
us into a fairly early example of the
idiom for which Lutosławski is
best known, and are settings of Children’s
Rhymes by the Lithuanian born poet Kazimiera
Illakowicz (1892-1983). ‘The
Sea’ illustrates the text with atmospheric
sostenuto strings, and gently
chiming, almost pointillist piano and
harp notes. ‘Winter’ is another piece
in which delicate string glissandi
on sparing harmonies seems to make
time stand almost still. ‘The Wind’,
‘Knights’ and ‘Church Bells’ are all
illustrated with effectively programmatic
instrumentation, providing contrast
and impact with signature piano clusters,
tremolando strings and the percussive
edge of gongs and cymbals. ‘Avant Garde’
for its time, this music still sounds
fresh and inspired, proving that a modern
approach need not be transient in value.
These performances
are beautifully sung and played by Antoni
Wit’s Polish musicians, and this recording
is another rich peacock feather in Naxos’s
already heavily plumed hat. I shall
be playing this disc a great deal over
Christmas this year – it brings home
the true spirit of the season,
and makes one glad to be alive during
the sparkling darkness of midwinter.
Dominy Clements
see also
review by Hubert Culot
Olga Pasichnyk (soprano) ¹ 
