Łukaszewski: Via Crucis

Stephen Layton’s first disc of Lukaszewski’s choral works (with The Choir of Trinity College, Cambridge) was widely praised by listeners entranced by the composer’s unique yet accessible musical language. For this new release Layton and Polyphony, together with the Britten Sinfonia and a team of world-class soloists, have taken on a major work which is destined to become a modern classic in the vein of Tavener’s The Veil of the Temple or Pärt’s St John Passion. Via Crucis is a dramatization of the Stations of the Cross, a musical reading of this most solemn journey that evolves through its 55-minutes in an arc of culminatory ritual power.

CDA67724  55 minutes 4 seconds
‘A composer with a profound understanding of the technical and emotional range of the human voice … the shining writing for the countertenor Evangelist (performed by the outstanding Iestyn Davies ...
‘Łukaszewski's reputation is growing rapidly, and rightly so … here, Christ's victory over death enables Łukaszewski to end on a triumphant coda that carries a primal power recalling Orff's Ca ...
‘This eminently accessible oratorio, whose impact is unquestionable … the piece is delivered with passionate, almost frightening intensity. From Polyphony under Stephen Layton's inspired directio ...