scored for mezzo soprano and piano

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duration 12 minutes 

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What makes Wisława Szymborska’s poetry so fascinating is her ability to distill unexpected wisdom from everyday reality. She does not start from grand ideas, but from small, recognizable situations. Her tone is light, sometimes playful, never heavy-handed. Like a haiku, a moment unfolds through minimal means, suddenly revealing a deeper meaning.

 

In The Three Oddest Words, she shows how language undermines itself: future, silence, and nothing disappear or transform the instant we name them. Going Home narrows the focus to a man who, after an unseen setback, curls up beneath a blanket. Behind this ordinary image lies an existential vulnerability. Through A Few Words on the Soul, we come to realize that matters of the soul are rare—and therefore something to be cherished.

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'Trzy Słowa Najdziwniejsze'

'Powroty'

'Trochę o Duszy'

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A Few Songs on the Soul is dedicated to Zofia Hanna and was first performed during the Gory Literatury Festiwal, curated by Nobel Price Winner Olga Tokarczuk in Nowej Rudy, Poland.