Sailing across sacral waters

Twice a year in Warsaw, in April and October, the eastern bank of the Vistula resounds with sacral song during the Musica Sacra festival, a series of concerts celebrating this form of spiritual music. 

"Our main goal is to promote sacral music. However, this [refers more to] modern music [of quality] than simplistic music. We also would like to promote young, gifted artists," says Paweł Łukaszewski, the president of the Musica Sacra Association, the organizer of the festival.

This April, on consecutive Sundays, the Musica Sacra festival will stage concerts in the Praga Cathedral. On April 22, the Choir of the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic will perform Henryk Górecki's Five Marian Songs along with pieces from Marian Borkowski and Paweł Łukaszewski.

The following Sunday, April 29, the Musica Sacra Praga Cathedral Choir, accompanied by soloists from the Concert Band of the Polish Armed Forces, will perform musical works by Cyrillus Kreek, Randall Thompson, Karol Szymanowski and John Tavener. Moreover, the concert will include the world debut of Witold Lutosławski's Lord Tennyson Song, which was prepared on the basis of Lutosławski's own manuscript. The festival will end with Gloria, a piece written by John Rutter.

The Musica Sacra festival is unique not only in terms of its theme, but also because of its location, since the majority of cultural events in Warsaw take place on the western bank of river. This is something the festival organizers would like to change.

"The left side of the river has the Opera, Operetta and a few orchestras. We want musical life to exist and flourish [in Praga]. Looking at all concerts that we have organized here, it seems that we are managing to do it," says Paweł Łukaszewski.

For more details, log on to www.musicasacra.com.pl