Classical Music as an Extreme Sport: Chojnacka Plays Gorecki on the Harpsichord

Anyone who thinks that classical music is for wimps should take a look at this riveting performance of Polish composer H.M. Górecki's Concerto for Harpsichord and String Orchestra, Op. 40 (1981) I came across it this week when I was rooting around, doing research for my next novel, River Music, which has a harpsichordist as a major charaacter--but more about that another time.

You'll remember that when Górecki's Third Symphony was played on the radio in Los Angeles in the 1990s, people pulled off the freeway to listen properly. The Concerto is a lot more energetic, and here it is played with absolutely amazing energy by Polish harpsichordist Elisabeth Chojnacka. Like most harpsichordists of recent years, she started off playing Baroque and Renaissance works on the instrument, but she now specializes in contemporary music. Born in 1939, she's even older than Mick Jagger, but she struts her stuff with just as much energy.