Arvo Pärt on DeBaser: reviews, works and quotes

Arvo Pärt

Musician

Forlisteners of contemporary classical and sacred choral music, minimalism enthusiasts, and ecm devotees seeking contemplative soundscapes.
3 Reviews 2 Definitions 1 Charts

The Profile

Arvo Pärt (born 1935, Paide, Estonia) is a composer renowned for the tintinnabuli style—music of triads, silence and radical simplicity. After early experiments with serialism and dodecaphony (studying under Heino Eller at the Tallinn Conservatory and engaging with the Darmstadt school), he turned to Gregorian chant and Baroque models. Tintinnabuli emerged with Für Alina (1976) and deepened with Spiegel im Spiegel (1978). ECM releases helped bring works like Tabula Rasa, Fratres, Passio and Te Deum to international attention.

Estonian composer known for tintinnabuli; hallmark themes of simplicity, silence and sacred contemplation; widely documented on ECM.

Three reviews portray Arvo Pärt’s tintinnabuli as music of simplicity, silence and spiritual depth. Tabula Rasa is hailed as emblematic of his style and ECM-era breakthrough. Alina focuses on Für Alina and Spiegel im Spiegel, praising triadic purity and slow transformation. Miserere reveals his austere sacred voice with choir, organ and winds.

Notable Quotes

❝ I could compare my music to a white light that contains all colors.

❝ Here I am, alone with silence. I have discovered that it is enough when even a single note is beautifully played.

❝ If you don't know Arvo Pärt, it might be because you've never seen him on television, nor will you ever. But if you have ever looked inside yourself, then you are ready to be seduced by this music.