St Luke Passion (Penderecki)

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St Luke Passion
by Krzysztof Penderecki

Performance at the Novaya Opera Theatre, Moscow, in 2016

English Passion and Death of Our Lord Jesus Christ According to St Luke
Full title Passio et mors Domini nostri Jesu Christi secundum Lucam
Text
from Gospel of LukeStabat MaterhymnspsalmsLamentations
Language Latin
Performed 30 March 1966
Scoring
narratorsopranobaritonebassthree choirschildren's choirorchestra
The St Luke Passion (full title: Passio et mors Domini nostri Jesu Christi secundum
Lucam, or the Passion and Death of Our Lord Jesus Christ According to St Luke) is a
work for chorus and orchestra written in 1966 by Polish composer Krzysztof
Penderecki, which, considered within the context of the officially atheistic Polish
People's Republic and other Eastern Bloc countries, makes its potentially
subversive subject matter even that much more remarkable. Penderecki wrote the work
to commemorate a millennium of Polish Christianity following the baptism and
conversion of Polish duke Mieszko I in 966 AD. Penderecki's setting is one of
several musical settings of the Passion story and contains text from the Gospel of
Luke as well as other sources such as the Stabat Mater. Despite the Passion's
almost total atonality and use of avant-garde musical techniques, the musical
public appreciated the work's stark power and direct emotional impact and the piece
was performed several more times soon after its premiere on 30 March 1966.

Musical content
Compositional techniques
The Passion is almost entirely atonal, except for two major triads which occur once
at the end of the Stabat Mater, a cappella, and once, an E-major triad, at the very
end of the work with full choruses, orchestra and organ. It makes very frequent use
of tone clusters, often played fortissimo by brass or organ. The contrapuntal
equivalent of tone clusters is micropolyphony, which is one approach to texture
that occurs in this piece (Stein 1979, 234).

Occasionally, Penderecki employs twelve-tone serialism, and utilizes the B-A-C-H

motif. Moreover, David Wordsworth believes that the B-A-C-H motif unites the entire
work (Wordsworth 2013, 47). The principle tone row, Cantus Firmus I, is C♯–D–F–E–
E♭–F♯–G–G♯–B–B♭–A–C. The tone row of Cantus Firmus II is E–E♭–F–F♯–D–C♯–G–A♭–B♭–A–
C–B. The chorus makes use of many extended techniques, including shouting,
speaking, giggling and hissing.

Orchestration
The St Luke Passion is scored for large
Evangelist); soprano, baritone and bass
role of Christ and the soprano and bass
mixed choruses and a boys' choir; and a
forces: a narrator (who acts as the
soloists (with the baritone singing the
taking other roles as necessary); three
large orchestra consisting of:

Woodwinds
4 flutes (2 doubling piccolos, 1 doubling alto flute)
1 bass clarinet in B♭
2 alto saxophones
3 bassoons
1 contrabassoon
Brass

6 horns in F
4 trumpets in B♭
4 trombones
1 tuba

Percussion

timpani (4 drums)
bass drum
6 tom-toms
2 bongos
snare drum
whip
4 wood blocks
raganella
güiro
claves
4 cymbals
2 tam-tams
2 gongs