The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir has become the only professional choir from overseas to tour the U.S. on a regular basis, thanks to its unique repertoire, distinctive sound and high performance standard. They are best known for their recordings of the works of fellow-countryman Arvo Pärt, who is the most popular living classical composer worldwide.
“So wondrously talented a group of singers… The selections and the performances were so fine that they left you feeling like an ingrate, greedily hungry for more.” -The New York Times
The Arvo Pärt Project, now part of the Institute of Sacred Arts at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, has celebrated and explored the music of the great Estonian composer since 2012. Since 2014 the Project has been at the heart of major Arvo Pärt events at Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and other venues, especially the Church of St Ignatius Loyola, with whom the Project has collaborated for many years. Founding director Dr. Peter Bouteneff has authored several major books and essays about the composer, and serves on the Artistic Advisory Board of the Arvo Pärt Center in Laulasmaa, Estonia.
The program for this concert was carefully curated by Maestro Tõnu Kaljuste. It focuses on Pärt while interlacing selections from Palestrina, the 16th century composer whose purity and concision influenced the Estonian during his search, in the early 1970’s, for a new voice.
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
Conductor Tõnu Kaljuste
Palestrina - "Offertorium - Benedictus es Domine"
Pärt - "Magnificat"
Palestrina - "Offertorium - Ave Maria"
Pärt - "Nunc Dimittis"
- "The Deer’s Cry"
Palestrina - motet "Hodie Christus Natus Est"
Pärt - "Dopo la Vittoria"
Palestrina - "Offertorium - Laudate Dominum"
Pärt - "Kanon Pokajanen: Kontakion"
“Kanon Pokajanen: Ikos"
“Kanon Pokajanen: Prayer After the Canon"
