31 (II Symfonia "Kopernikowska") (sampleⓘ) is a choral symphony composed by Henryk Górecki in 1972 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the birth of astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.
The symphony was commissioned by the Kosciuszko Foundation in New York and presented to Górecki as an opportunity to reach an audience outside his native Poland.
[1] Norman Davies commented: "His discovery, of the earth's motion round the sun, caused the most fundamental revolutions possible in the prevailing concepts of the human predicament.
"[2] Its world premiere took place on June 22, 1973 in Warsaw, featuring soprano Stefania Woytowicz and baritone Andrzej Hiolski.
[3] Adrian Thomas writes in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Second Edition, "The second movement marks an important stage in Górecki's conversion to a more consonant language since the late 1960s, a process which was clarified in several choral pieces and the Third Symphony.