Reading these words, one might assume that Pioro is a devout Catholic, or at least a Christian of some kind. But, in fact, he told his interviewer, Julian Haycock, "I'm not a religious man..." Nevertheless, he went on to state: "I have never experienced the sensation of deep faith so powerfully as when I work on this music."
This expression of seemingly deep religious feelings by a musician who professes to lack faith seems to be a rather common theme in the field of classical music. As someone who regularly reads publications like Gramophone and BBC Music that cover classical music, I have noticed sentiments similar to those expressed by Pioro being expressed by other musicians. Moreover, this phenomenon is not only noticeable in the case of performers, but also composers. For example, the British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958), called himself a "cheerful agnostic," and yet he wrote many works inspired by Christian beliefs and Christian literature, including an opera based on John Bunyan's allegory of the Christian life, The Pilgrim's Progress. Not only that, Vaughan Williams also edited a famous collection of hymns, The English Hymnal, and even wrote a number of well-known hymns (see this article "How a cheerful agnostic became one of most prolific hymn writers of the 20th century"). The German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), one of the giants of the Romantic era, was also an agnostic, and yet he composed quite a number of works based on biblical texts, including his famous A German Requiem.
This phenomenon seems difficult to understand. How can someone experience or express deep feelings about something one does not actually believe? I cannot claim to know the answer for certain, but I do wonder if it has something to do with the nature of music. Music, as we all know, is closely connected to human feelings. Thus, when performing a piece of music, it can be very easy to be caught up in the feelings and ideas expressed by the music. Moreover, in the case of music that is based in some way on Christian beliefs, it may be that the emotions evoked by the music may make those beliefs seem more plausible.
However, it seems to me that the attraction--for some musicians, at least--of performing or composing works inspired by the Christian faith is more than a matter of mere emotion. I suspect that in the case of performers like Pioro or composers like Vaughan Williams, there is--or was--something about Christian beliefs that resonated deeply with their souls because these beliefs are true--even if these individuals are (or were) unwilling to acknowledge their truth. Such is the power of the Gospel! Would that those musicians--and others so disposed--who reject Christianity while experiencing an attraction to it yet come to faith!
Image of Ralph Vaughan Williams from Wikimedia Commons