Some of Henryk Gorecki’s closest collaborators were the members of the Kronos Quartet. He composed all three of his string quartets for Kronos. As it happens, when the composer passed away yesterday, the group was in Poland. Late yesterday, David Harrington, Kronos’ first violinist, released the following statement:

“The three string quartets Henryk Górecki wrote for Kronos are a totally unique

body of work. With ‘Already it is Dusk’, Quasi Una Fantasia’ and ‘…songs are

sung’, Górecki extended a tradition that includes Bach and Beethoven, among

many others. When we rehearsed with Henryk, the experience was as close as

we have ever been to witnessing the raw, impassioned core in the heart of

Europe’s great invention: the string quartet. When he demonstrated phrases on

the piano for us I was always reminded of Beethoven: his fortes were shattering,

his pianissimos unfathomably inward. From us, he always wanted as much as

our bows could handle and more.

“Górecki represented a totally independent voice. He only listened inward.

There was no amount of pressure that ever pulled him away from his ideals. He

was known for his cancellations, as even the Pope discovered. Kronos waited 12

years for a piece that was so personal he couldn’t let it out of his sight until the

right moment mysteriously arrived. And I always loved him more for that

devotion to his muse.

“I learned that Henryk was a skilled furniture maker known for his beautiful

chairs. I once asked him if he would consider making me a chair. He said,

‘David, you can have the chair or you can have String Quartet #4. You choose.’ I

chose String Quartet #4. But it looks like I will have to wait.

“There is no one who can replace Henryk Górecki in the world of music. Many

others have created beautiful, passionate, even exalted music. But Henryk found

a way forward and beyond, through thickets of styles and fashions, that

resonates of the single human being in communion with the power of the

Universe. I miss him immensely.”

David Harrington

November 12, 2010

Wroclaw, Poland