The 52 string instruments indicated in the piece's full title are 24 violins, 10 violas, 10 cellos and 8 double basses.[10] The piece's written length is about 8 minutes and 37 seconds.[11][12] Originally called 8'37",[13] the piece applies the
sonoristic technique which tends to focus on specific characteristics and qualities of timbre, texture, articulation, dynamics, and motion in an attempt to create freer form, and rigors of specific
counterpoint to an ensemble of strings treated to unconventional scoring. Penderecki's stated intent with the composition was to "develop a new musical language".[14] Penderecki later said, "It existed only in my imagination, in a somewhat abstract way." When he heard an actual performance, "I was struck by the emotional charge of the work ... I searched for associations and, in the end, I decided to dedicate it to the
Hiroshima victims".[15]
The 52 string instruments meld together in sonoristic manipulation and counterpoint in a manner which, according to reviewer Paul Griffiths, makes the listener "uneasy by choosing to refer to an event too terrible for string orchestral screams".[16]Threnody's sustained
tone clusters and various extended techniques – including a riot of varying vibrato, slapped instruments, playing on the tailpiece and behind the bridge – are matched by an optical notation full of thick black lines.[17][18]: 94 At times Penderecki takes an
aleatoric approach, offering the players a choice of techniques or demanding irregular degrees of
vibrato. The piece is also marked by a considerable rigor in its timing indications, notated in seconds, as well as specific note clusters and the use of quarter tones, clustered pitches and
sound mass which accumulates in a reservoir of hypertonality.[18]: 93
^
abThe UNESCO prize is not restricted to choosing a single winner, rather, the Rostrum may choose a variable number of winners ranked in a specialized order of selection.[3]
^While referred to informally as the UNESCO prize,
UNESCO is not involved with the selection of winners, who are instead chosen by the Tribune Internationale des Compositeurs (Rostrum of International Composers, or Rostrum).[8] The Rostrum is organized by the
International Music Council, an NGO which was created in 1949 as UNESCO's advisory body on matters of music.[9]
^Maslowiec, Anna (2008).
"Threnody To The Victims Of Hiroshima, 1959–61"(PDF). Sonorism and the Polish Avant-Garde 1958–1964 (PhD thesis). Vol. 1. The University of Sydney, Conservatorium of Music. p. 147.
^Ashby, Arved (2004).
"Modernism goes to the movies". In Arved Ashby (ed.). The Pleasure of Modernist Music: Listening, Meaning, Intention, Ideology. Boydell & Brewer. pp. 351, 384.
ISBN978-1-58046-143-6. [Penderecki's words are] Cited by Miekzyslaw Tomaszewski in his liner notes for Penderecki: Orchestral Works, Vol. 1 (Naxos 8.554491, 2000).
^Griffiths, Paul (1976). "Review of Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima, Penderecki, K.". The Musical Times. 117 (1605): 915.
doi:
10.2307/958398.
JSTOR958398.
^Kozak, Mariusz (1 February 2017). "Experiencing Structure in Penderecki's Threnody: Analysis, Ear-Training, and Musical Understanding". Music Theory Spectrum. 38 (2): 200–217.
doi:
10.1093/mts/mtw015.
ISSN0195-6167.
^
abKałużny, Jan A. (1963). "Krzysztof Penderecki and his Contribution to Modern Musical Notation". The Polish Review. 8 (3). The University of Illinois Press on behalf of the Polish Institute of Arts & Sciences of America: 86–95.
JSTOR25776495.
^Robert Parrish, director (27 August 1969).
Journey to the Far Side of the Sun (Motion picture). Screenplay by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and Donald James. Produced by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. Music by Barry Gray. Cinematography by John Read. Edited by Len Walter. Century 21 Cinema Productions.
OCLC905922131.