My soul longs for what
my eyes do not see,
My heart moves to
the rhythm of my soul
With its notes
I compose worlds
and volumes of worlds

~ After Walt Whitman

Arvo Part is a composer of another age. The Estonian composer’s music values silence and depth. They offer a sonic refuge to our age where all manner of noise threatens to bombard our senses. If Part’s music sounds spiritual it is because to him, “one must purify the soul until it begins to sound.”

LISTEN

Arvo Part, ‘Magnificat’ (1989)

Magnificat is an a cappella choir piece based on the Gospel of Luke in which Mary praises the Lord in the presence of Elizabeth. In different church traditions, it is sung during the evening or morning service. It is one of Arvo Part’s most performed composition.

The structure of the piece is simple and transparent: both melody and harmony moves around a single axis: c, and are shaped by the parameters of the text.

Here is Magnificat, a 50-minute performance by the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir. Have a listen, even if you have time for only a slice of this magnificent composition.

Arvo Part, ‘Silentium’, from Tabula Rasa (1977)

Silentium is a haunting and hypnotic meditation on silence. It is the second movement of Tabula Rasa (meaning “clean slate” or possibly “awakening”), a double concerto for two solo violins. The melody of Silentium is decidedly slow-paced, as the two violins carry us gently towards its end, when the final note is left unplayed, silence prevails and all is resolved.

A Brief Biography of Arvo Part

Arvo Pärt (b. 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a bell-like compositional technique he invented. Pärt’s music is in part inspired by Gregorian chant and other ancient chorals. His most performed works include Spiegel im Spiegel (1978), and Für Alina (1976). From 2011 to 2018, and again in 2022, Pärt was the most performed living composer in the world, and the second most performed in 2019, after John Williams. For more information on his works, visit The Arvo Pärt Centre website (https://www.arvopart.ee/en/)