From The Guardian:

Penderecki, whose death at the age of 86 was announced today, was born in Dębica, in south-east Poland in 1933. He emerged as a force in Polish modern composition alongside such figures as Witold Lutosławski, Tadeusz Baird, Andrzej Dobrowolski and Henryk Mikołaj Górecki who, during the late 1950s, were all constructing pieces using clusters of notes jam-packed together, often requiring players to explore terrain that pushed beyond the conventions of their instrument.

This is the first I'm hearing of this and I'm wondering why. Such a giant... one of the few "New Music" composers I really, really dig - I used to sprinkle his stuff (and Peter Maxwell Davies) into my playlists when I'd have friends over at the house... usually sandwiched in between Mingus, Trane, and some Pawhuska field recordings.

Like many my age, I was introduced to his music through a "less traditional" vein - namely radiohead's music and Johnny Greenwood's professed obsession with his compositions. The first time I heard the Threnody I was floored. Polymorphia jumpstarted a series of conceptual things I've never gotten around to performing, but have influenced my writing nonetheless. Anaklasis was a key into something else...

Killer piece. Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima:

<YOUTUBE id="p9xAjiZo7go">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9xAjiZo7go</YOUTUBE>

Every year I taught Music History The Threnody was always played for the students. I felt is was a piece they needed to be exposed to.