The New York Times states the following about the composer, “Pärt is playing for higher stakes. He wants to touch something that he would call the soul, and to a remarkable extent, he is succeeding.” The combination of both film and on-stage performances will enrich the overall audience experience. Both EstDocs films provide a deeper context into how Pärt and Kaljuste have influenced and shaped the musical world, while the live performances will invite audiences to experience the ethereal brilliance of Pärt’s recent work for choir and string orchestra.
Event descriptions are as follows:
Soundstreams Salon 21: The Sound in Silence, The Music of Arvo Pärt
Friday September 20, Gardiner Museum
Free event, register at http://soundstreams.ca/perform...
Meet and greet at 7:00 p.m. Performances and chat start at 7:30 p.m. and mingling at 8:30 p.m.
Estonian composer Arvo Pärt has created a musical language that mixes post-modernism, spirituality, consonance and beauty. His work will be explored in discussion with Mark Vuorinen, choral conductor and scholar of Estonian music, and through performances of several of Pärt’s seminal vocal works.
EstDocs showcases Arvo Pärt in Istanbul (Arvo Pärt Istanbulis) and Headwind Hall (Vastutuulesaal)
Sunday September 29, Tartu College
Pay what you can at the door, all proceeds to VEMU (Museum of Estonians Abroad)
Doors open at 4:00 p.m. Q&A and reception with Estonian Kringel coffee bread and coffee follows screening at approximately 5:30 pm
Estonian with English subtitles
Estonian Television (ETV) 32 minute Arvo Pärt in Istanbul (2010) is about the premiere of Arvo Pärt's "Adam's Lament" in Istanbul, Turkey which was conducted by Tõnu Kaljuste.
Headwind Hall (2007) produced by Artur Talvik / Ruut Pictures, 55 minute film focuses on Tõnu Kaljuste's plan to build an opera house on Nargen Island in Estonia. EstDocs screened this film in 2007, where it received the Audience Favourite Award. EstDocs thanks Estonian Public Broadcasting, Universal Edition Wien and Artur Talvik / Ruut Pictures for their cooperation and assistance.
The Music of Arvo Pärt
Tuesday October 1, Koerner Hall at the TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning
Pärt’s fellow Estonian and long-time collaborator Tõnu Kaljuste conducts Choir 21 and string orchestra in a program featuring the Canadian premiere of Pärt’s L’abbé Agathon and Adam’s Lament, with performances by soprano Shannon Mercer and baritone Geoffrey Sirett. The concert also features premieres by James Rolfe and Riho Esko Maimets.
Pre-Concert Chat at 7:00 p.m.
Come early for a discussion with Soundstreams Artistic Director, Lawrence Cherney, and composers Riho Maimets and James Rolfe. They will explore the contemplative spirituality in the music of Arvo Pärt and tell us about their works premiering at the concert.
