MetaChat - Arvo Pärt

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24 May 2009

Arvo Pärt is an Estonian composer whose music I've just recently discovered, when I heard his "Cantus (In Memory Of Benjamin Britten)" played on the radio late one night several weeks ago. His music is gorgeous, and some of it reminds me a little bit of Eno's ambient works, but with much stronger composition.→[More:] I picked up a couple of his CDs, and now I'm totally in love with another of his pieces, called "Spiegel im Spiegel" (means "Mirror In Mirror"). Played on piano and violin, I think it's utterly hypnotic.

The album Alina contains 3 versions of "Spiegel im Spiegel" (the first one is my favorite, though) and 2 versions of another piano piece, "Für Alina," another piano work. You can find all of them here (or via the previous two links).

post by: BoringPostcards at: 20:12 | 6 comments

I cannot recommend highly enough "Kanon Pokajanen." It is an a capella work, performed by the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, and is just amazingly beautiful. Spine tingling. (And my favorite part is a minute or two into Kondakion, you can very clearly hear birds chirping in the background.) "Te Deum," "Litany" and "Miserere" are also spectacular. I have been fascinated by pretty much all his compositions he has written since leaving the Soviet Union.

So, congratulations on the discovery. I have little doubt that you will be listening to Pärt's music for many years to come.

posted by deadcowdan 24 May | 22:15

The funny thing about Pärt is how different his earlier music sounds from his mature works. Back in Soviet Estonia, he wrote music for quite a few films and animated shorts. I've seen most of these shorts* as a child (but some of the films as well) and while the music is beautiful, it's hard to believe it was written by the same man (one of the best-known pieces is a waltz for an accordion!).

* Some of these were banned after Pärt left the Soviet Union; in most cases, his name was simply removed from the credits.

posted by Daniel Charms 25 May | 01:32

I'm fond of Pärt's '70s instrumental works: the later choral pieces, while beautiful, are a little too austerely religious for me.

BoPo: be sure to check out Pärt's Fratres (of which there are numerous different versions) and also Tabula Rasa.

posted by misteraitch 25 May | 05:05

Oh, excellent- thanks for the tips, everybody.

misteraitch, I have Tabula Rasa and it's excellent, as well. It's the same CD that has Cantus on it.

posted by BoringPostcards 25 May | 07:09

I came in to recommend Tabula Rasa as well, but then figured you probably had the ECM record of that and Cantus together.

Pärt's works are really unlike anything else.

posted by SpiffyRob 25 May | 09:02

For me, the Alina album has deep personal associations to the time in my life when I got it.

Another of his solo piano pieces composed in the seventies is "Variationen zur Gesundung von Arinuschka"

posted by D.C. 25 May | 09:04

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