Beginning his career in the late '50s as a serialist, Henryk Górecki originally composed explosively complex works characterized by their extreme dissonance. But by the late '70s, the Polish composer had abandoned many of his avant-garde tendencies, developing a hushed and haunting style based on simplicity and repetition. Often considered one of the key "holy minimalist" composers alongside John Tavener and Arvo Pärt, Górecki created works that were often too dark and dramatic to comfortably fit within the confines of any one movement, and he continued to compose moving works until his death in 2010.