Penderecki conducts Penderecki: Symphony No. 7

In January 2000, Cannes became the setting for a major moment in Krzysztof Penderecki’s late career: his Symphony No. 7, Seven Gates of Jerusalem, was performed there just as he was honoured with MIDEM’s Composer of the Year award. The work had received its French premiere the previous evening and unfolds on a monumental scale, uniting solo voices, choir and orchestra in a seven-part meditation on psalms and prophetic visions. Its blend of ceremonial power and stark introspection marks it as one of Penderecki’s defining statements.