Totus Tuus

Poland’s atheistic communist regime was in a state of terminal decline by the time Górecki composed Totus tuus in 1987. This a cappella motet was written to mark the third pilgrimage of Pope John Paul II, former Archbishop of Kraków, to his homeland, and was performed upon the pontiff’s arrival at Warsaw airport, and again during the Mass held the following Sunday in Warsaw’s Victory Square. Its text, from a Latin poem by Maria Bogusławska (1951-2001), opens with the Pope’s motto, “Totus tuus”, combined with an expression of his absolute devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary: “Maria! Totus tuus sum, Maria” (“Mary! I am wholly yours, O Mary”). Górecki’s personal humility registers in the simplicity and sonorous beauty of his composition. The work’s chordal writing includes room for arresting modulations and passing dissonances, a reminder of the imperfection of earthly life; the latter, however, are soon resolved to create a clear musical metaphor for the compassion so deeply associated with Mary, “Mother of the Saviour of the world”. Górecki repeats her name 13 times in succession towards the end of the piece, carried by chords that gradually diminish in volume before fading into silence.