Polychoral compositions of Mikołaj Zieleński

The heyday of the art of polychoral composition in European musical culture falls on the middle of the 17th century. The style originated in the churches of western and central Italy. It united a whole generation of young Polish composers educated in Venice and Rome. One of them is the famous Polish composer Mikolaj Zielenski. In musical style Zielenski follows the traditions of late Renaissance polyphony. His compositions mark the beginning of a long period of influence of Italian style on Polish music. Until today the question remains open, where the composer got acquainted with the Venetian technique of writing multi-choir music. The composer could master the polychoral style without leaving Poland. The polychoral style was then very widespread thanks to the activities of Italian musicians throughout Europe.All of Zielenski 's works known today were published in Venice in 1611. The first of these, Offertoria totius anni, includes multi-choir compositions similar to Giovanni Gabrieli's Sacrae symphoniae. The collection contains 55 compositions, the last of which is the Magnificat for three choirs. Mikolaj Zielenski 's Magnificat can be considered a classical composition for three choirs. In terms of stylistic and compositional features, it follows Italian traditions, in connection with which it is often compared with Giovanni Gabrieli's Magnificat.The history of polychoral style is one of the most interesting pages in the history of European musical culture. The Venetian style influenced the music of Central and Eastern Europe, including Russian musical culture.