Harmonia Mundi: Baltic Voices - Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Paul Hillier - 3 Audio CD Box Set

Brand new! Factory packaged! As pictured! Buy with confidence!

Product Details:

• Product Type: Audio CD Box Set (3 CDs)
• Label: Harmonia Mundi
• Catalog Number: HMX 2908793.95 (comprising HMX 2908793, HMX 2908794, HMX 2908795)
• Ensemble: Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
• Conductor: Paul Hillier
• Genre: Classical / Choral / Contemporary / Baltic
• Original Recordings: 2002-2005
• This Edition: 2017
• Publisher: Harmonia Mundi musique s.a.s., Médiapôle Saint-Césaire, 13200 Arles
• Barcode (UPC): 3149020879344
• LC: 7045
• Condition: Factory Sealed

Product Features

• Format: 3-CD box set (standard jewel cases in slipcase)
• Total Playing Time: 3h 40' 52"
• Booklet: French text / English notes
• Content: Complete Baltic Voices series (Volumes 1, 2 & 3)
• Composers represented: 20 composers from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Poland, Russia, and Germany

Overview

Baltic Voices is the recording project that introduced much of the Western classical world to the choral tradition of the Baltic states - and the names on the back of this box explain why it matters. Arvo Pärt, Veljo Tormis, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Pēteris Vasks, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Alfred Schnittke, Kaija Saariaho, Henryk Mikołaj Górecki - twenty composers across three discs, all brought together under Paul Hillier's direction with the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir.

This 2017 Harmonia Mundi box brings together all three original volumes (recorded between 2002 and 2005) in a single set for the first time. Hillier was among the first Western conductors to take the choral music of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania seriously as a body of work rather than a regional curiosity, and the EPCC is an instrument of exceptional precision and warmth - arguably the finest chamber choir in Northern Europe.

The repertoire spans sacred and secular, ancient and contemporary, minimalist and complex. Arvo Pärt's contemplative tintinnabuli style sits alongside Veljo Tormis's ancient Estonian runo-song settings and Kaija Saariaho's more textural, modernist writing. The cumulative effect over three and a half hours is something close to immersive - a complete sonic portrait of a northern European choral world that has no equivalent in the West.

For anyone interested in contemporary choral music, Scandinavian and Baltic composers, or simply outstanding ensemble singing, this box set is a landmark release and represents remarkable value for the depth of material it contains.

Interesting Facts

• The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir was founded in 1981 by Tõnu Kaljuste; it quickly became one of the world's most celebrated chamber choirs, particularly associated with the music of Arvo Pärt, whose works it has recorded extensively.
• Paul Hillier (born England, 1949) founded the Hilliard Ensemble in 1974 before going on to lead the Theatre of Voices and eventually the EPCC; he became one of the most influential choral conductors of his generation, with a particular specialism in early and contemporary music.
• Veljo Tormis (1930-2017) is considered Estonia's greatest choral composer; his life's work was the preservation and artistic development of ancient Finno-Ugric runo-song traditions, resulting in over 500 choral pieces.
• Arvo Pärt (born 1935) developed his distinctive "tintinnabuli" compositional style in the late 1970s after a period of creative silence; the style - based on the notes of a single triad moving against a stepwise melody - has become one of the most recognizable voices in late 20th-century classical music.
• Pēteris Vasks (born Latvia, 1946) studied double bass and composition in Soviet-era Latvia; his music combines Lutheran chorale traditions, Latvian folk music, and a deeply personal spiritual language.
• The Baltic choral tradition has deep roots in the region's "Singing Revolutions" of the late 1980s, when mass public singing events became a key form of peaceful resistance against Soviet occupation in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania - all three countries effectively sang their way to independence.

Composers Represented

Cyrillus Kreek - Einojuhani Rautavaara - Veljo Tormis - Sven-David Sandström - Arvo Pärt - Pēteris Vasks - Urmas Sisask - Toivo Tulev - Per Nørgård - Galina Grigorjeva - Alfred Schnittke - Vaclovas Augustinas - Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen - Kaija Saariaho - Rytis Mažulis - Erik Bergman - Algirdas Martinaitis - Erkki-Sven Tüür - Henryk Mikołaj Górecki

Label & Publisher

Harmonia Mundi musique s.a.s., Médiapôle Saint-Césaire, 13200 Arles. Original recordings © 2002-2005. This edition © 2017.

We value your feedback! Share your experience with this product to help others make informed decisions. Your review is important to us!