The Adam Mickiewicz Institute has published an album about Henryk Mikołaj Górecki, prepared for his 75th birthday celebrations in 2008. This beautifully edited illustrated book, published entirely in English, is directed primarily at readers from abroad. It bridges an important gap in the Górecki bibliographies worldwide.
This anniversary edition, edited by Barbara Zwolska-Stęszewska, contains the composer’s biography written by Anna Iwanicka-Nijakowska, an in-depth essay about Górecki’s oeuvre by the distinguished musicologist Krzysztof Droba, a text by Jakub Banaś about the links between the composer’s music and film, and two interviews with Górecki conducted in 2002 and 2008 by Małgorzata and Marcin Gmys. The book also includes brief personal impressions on Górecki by such famous persons as Adrian Thomas, Eugeniusz Knapik, Louise Lerche-Lerchenborg, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Rafał Augustyn, David Harrington, Wojciech Michniewski, Elżbieta Chojnacka, Antoni Wit, Bohdan Pociej and Grzegorz Michalski. The publication is complemented by numerous photographs and a complete list of the composer’s works, with a detailed discography.