Antoni Wit - Orchestral Works 1 / Various [CD]

This is a great start, not just to this cycle, but to anyone new to Penderecki. The bulk of the disc is the 45 minute Symphony No. 3, started in 1988 and completed in 1995. Like most of Penderecki's work of the last 30 years, it is very approachable and "neo-romantic", showing hints of everyone from Beethoven to Bruckner to Prokofiev, but mostly centering around Penderecki's unique and deeply personal style. With conductor Wit pushing the orchestra to it's limits, but it is also highly melodic and memorable. Of special note is the virtuoso trumpet solo in the 2nd movement as well as the entire 3rd movement, an adagio that sits at the calm heart of the work. The second half of the disc takes us back to Penderecki's radical work of the 60s. The Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima is a modern classic, scored for 52 strings