CLASSICAL MUSIC - ARVO PART:TE DEUM

“The work Te Deum was a quest for something evanescent, something long lost or not yet found, the quest for something believed to be non-existent, but so real that it exists not only within us but beyond our being as well.” Arvo Part

Arvo Part is regarded as one of today’s most original creators of music. Many of his compositions are bound up with sacred texts and have a shimmeringly mystical, devotional quality, underscored by the use of Renaissance harmonisations, medieval melodic techniques, the music of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Gregorian chant. It is paradoxical that, while his work is ascetically spare and deeply  spiritual, it has become extraordinarily popular in a culture obsessed with sensuality and amusement. Part was born in Estonia, a country which has a strong tradition of choral music and is famed for its excellent choirs.

The country’s top vocal ensemble, the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, was founded in 1981 by the charismatic conductor TSnu Kaljuste.  Kaljuste has established the choir’s reputation  internationally through frequent touring and numerous audio releases.

This programme features a performance of Part’s luminously beautiful Te Deum given by the choir  and the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra conducted by Kaljuste. It was recorded under studio conditions at the Church of St Nicholas in Tallinn.  A fascinating insight into the life of the choir and Kaljuste’s gift for conducting is given in a documentary introduction. The cameras accompany the choir to Otepaa for a special residential rehearsal period, where they are joined by Arvo Part. Kaljuste talks in interview about the development of the choir under his leadership and about the importance of Part’s music in their repertoire.