BBC Proms, Arvo Pärt at 90 ★★★☆☆
The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir isn’t exactly a household name but this group of 27 singers holds a trump card.
They have the official blessing of probably the world’s most-performed, living classical composer Arvo Pärt, when it comes to the performance of his rapt and almost uncannily simple choral music. Last night they gave a 75-minute late-night tribute to Pärt in honour of his 90th birthday in the form of eight of his tiny, jewel-like works, interspersed with music by two of Pärt’s compatriots and two great forebears, Bach and Rachmaninov.
The choir’s director Tõnu Kaljuste clearly takes the view that a bell-like purity of sound and a perfect tonal blend – combined with an otherworldly quiet that feels restrained even when the volume cautiously swells – is the way to this music’s heart. It was never less than beautiful, and in those pieces where Pärt’s genius burns brightest, like the Magnificat, it actually brought tears to the eyes.
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, with Tõnu Kaljuste conducting Credit: Chris Christodoulou
The word “revelatory” is over-used but it was apt here, because the performances revealed so clearly Pärt’s ability to make us hear familiar sounds in a new way. For instance, those clashes between adjacent notes – which in most music betoken tension or anguish – here became innocent and radiant. In The Deer’s Cry, the pauses between each short invocation (“Christ beneath me, Christ above me…”) were tiny, but so perfectly placed they felt huge. The final chord of Peace upon you, Jerusalem, had the quiet radiance of distant bells.
These moments were wonderful, but it can’t be denied that a certain monotony crept into the evening. More variety of tone and colour in the performances would certainly have helped, but Kaljuste’s choice of pieces was also partly to blame. As the programme note reminded us, Pärt isn’t always loftily spiritual; he actually has a sense of humour and can compose vigorously energetic music, as in his comically pedantic genealogy Which was the son of… But we heard none of that side of Pärt here.
The variety of the evening came from those other composers. Galina Grigorjeva’s stony yet ecstatic Spring is Coming struck a different, more primitive-seeming sort of “spiritual” tone, garlanded with lovely high notes from Korean-born soprano Yena Choi. Two prayers from Rachmaninov’s Vespers brought a more human yearning for redemption to that huge space, though the choir’s radiantly cool tone lacked the true Russian fervency. The performance which most perfectly combined tender expressivity with tonal perfection was of Bach’s motet Ich lasse dich nicht (I shall not let thee go), discreetly supported by organist Kadri Toomoja.
The real surprise of the evening came from Pärt’s compatriot Veljo Tormis. His Curse upon Iron is a bitter denunciation of the metal that has facilitated murders and battles from ancient times. Driven by the incessant thunder of a shaman drum played by Kaljuste, the choir hurled their ancient mythical curses against iron in a rapid patter that swelled to a climax before retreating to a sullen murmur. It was riveting, and almost stole the show.
Vt veel: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/classical-music/august-best-classical-concerts/?ICID=continue_without_subscribing_reg_first