Symphony No. 3 “The Symphony of Sorrowful Songs”

“A towering monument to our world and to the appalling mess we have made of it,” is

how director Tony Palmer describes Henryk Górecki's phenomenally successful Symphony No. 3.

Taking his cue from Górecki's remarks about the inspiration for this symphony, Palmer overlays a

performance by the London Sinfonietta and soprano Dawn Upshaw, conducted by David Zinman, with

harrowing footage of man's crimes against his fellow man – from Auschwitz to Somalia, Iraq and

Sarajevo. The result is an intensely moving and disturbing film.