In memoriam Jerzy Popiełuszko, op. 97 (2010)

Hartwig Barte-Hanssen (b. 1961) — In memoriam Jerzy Popiełuszko, op. 97 (2010) for organ

“In memoriam Jerzy Popiełuszko”, op. 97 (2010) was written for a concert in Warsaw, Poland as part of the European Organ Festival. The piece is named for Jerzy Popiełuszko (1947–1984), a Polish Catholic priest who was deeply involved with the Solidarity movement and the struggle in the 1970s and 80s for a free Poland against the communist government. He was murdered in 1984 by agents of the state security service. In 2010 he was recognized as a martyr and beatified by the Roman Catholic Church.

German composer and organist Hartwig Barte-Hanssen (b. 1961) studied at the University of Hamburg where his teachers in music included Rose Kim, Eberhard Müller, and György Ligeti. He has appeared as a concert organist throughout Europe and serves as organist and choirmaster at St. Bartholomew in Wilster. Barte-Hanssen has composed works in varied genres including solo and chamber works and a number of cantatas and oratorios.