Tõnu Kaljuste Begins US Tour Devoted to Arvo Pärt’s Music
The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra will embark on a series of concerts in the US, performing the music of Arvo Pärt, who will be in the US himself to receive an academic distinction.
The initiator of the concert series is St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York and the organization will bestow an honorary doctorate in sacred music to Pärt at a ceremony on May 31, ETV reported on Tuesday.
A free concert on May 27 at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. will include "Fratres," "Adam’s Lament," "Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten," and "Te Deum."
On May 31, the musicians will perform in New York’s Carnegie Hall, where "Salve Regina" will be added to the program.
Conductor Tõnu Kaljuste told ETV that "Adam’s Lament" was the first major work that brought the musicians a Grammy award, whereas "Te Deum" was the first recording to be nominated for a Grammy and occupied the top spot in the Billboard chart for months.
A couple of years ago, the same program was tested on Mexican audiences, who welcomed the musicians with standing ovations.
The Tallinn Chamber Orchestra will also give a chamber concert in the Phillips Collection in Washington on May 29, presenting the world premiere of a new arrangement of "My Heart’s in the Highlands."
Finally, the Philharmonic Chamber Choir conducted by Tõnu Kaljuste will give an a cappella concert on June 2 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Temple of Dendur in New York, featuring Pärt’s Kanon Pokajanen.