News

The Arvo Pärt Centre invites musicians from the Nordic countries, as well as Latvia and Lithuania, to apply for a paid residency at the Arvo Pärt Centre. The application period begins on 4 July and closes on 31 August. The residency is open to creative professionals (or duos) working in music – including performers, composers and sound artists – from Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Latvia and Lithuania.

On June 27, the legendary composer, Arvo Pärt's colleague and close friend Alexander Knaifel (28.11.1943 – 27.06.2024) passed away.

How did a 2,500-year-old tree from Switzerland inspire Arvo Pärt to write a piece of music to the words of Viivi Luige entitled "Sei gelobt, du Baum" (Blessed art thou, tree), and how did a piece of it end up in Laulasmaa? Article by Ardo Västrik.

On 10 and 11 June, the Arvo Pärt Centre Endowment invited supporters, entrepreneurs, musicians and government representatives to the Arvo Pärt Centre to contribute to the preservation of Arvo Pärt’s creative legacy.

Arvo Pärt's music for children includes the cantata Our Garden for children's choir and symphony orchestra, with text by the popular children's author Eno Raud. Read the story by Karin Rõngelep.

This weekend, Estonia welcomes the legendary French filmmaker and writer Bruno Monsaingeon, creator of approximately a hundred music films. His visit centres on attending the Estonian premiere of his newly completed music documentary, Klaus Mäkelä: Towards the Flame, on 28 April at the Arvo Pärt Centre.

This year, the Arvo Pärt Centre is awarding two scholarships for creative work at the Arvo Pärt Centre. The recipients of the Arvo Pärt Centre scholarship in 2024 are French composer Benoît Sitzia and Spanish poet Elena Medel.

Hearty congratulations from the Arvo Pärt Centre to our long-time patron Epp Sonin who was awarded the title Friend of Culture 2023.

After eight years of creative searching, Arvo Pärt finally found a way to compose music again in early 1976. In a way, the Hortus Musicus concert in October 1976 can be considered the culmination of this long and challenging crisis, where Pärt’s new tintinnabuli style was heard for the first time in a set of works performed in the Estonia Concert Hall.

From 15 to 18 February, the festival “Zeitinsel Arvo Pärt”, dedicated to Arvo Pärt’s oeuvre, will take place at the Dortmund Concert Hall. During the festival, visitors can explore an exhibition created by the Arvo Pärt Centre and participate in a discussion on themes around Pärt and his work. “Zeitinsel Arvo Pärt” will feature several acclaimed performers of Pärt’s music, including violinists Gidon Kremer and Hugo Ticciati, as well as cellist Anja Lechner, the West German Radio (WDR) Symphony Orchestra conducted by Kristiina Poska, and Tõnu Kaljuste conducting the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, Estonia’s premier ensembles.

On Saturday, 13 January, the versatile American artist and musician Laurie Anderson visited the Arvo Pärt Centre. A long-time admirer of Pärt’s work, Anderson showed a deep fascination with the composer’s creative process.

With the concert “A Distant Land” / “Kauge maa” on 13 January we celebrate the 102nd birthday of composer Ester Mägi together with musicians from the other side of the globe. The Mägi Ensemble is a professional SA vocal ensemble that specializes in music from the Baltic region of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Their aim