Symmetry of Form

Inspirations outside the world of music often significantly influenced the formal outline of Panufnik’s works. Thus in Sinfonia Rustica (1948) the composer wanted to extract in an abstract way elements from the often exquisite Polish folk craft of symmetrical paper-cuts. ¹ This particular inspiration led mirror symmetry to be present not only in his harmony and musical syntax, but also in the overall formal outline of the symphony – even while it remained in principle a classical four-movement structure.