With its cover art showing the flags of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia and its sombre title, “Baltikum”, this final record from the prodigious SWR Vokalensemble shows clearly its intentions: a commitment to contemporary baltic choral music. The ninth and final episode of a series that Marcus Creed and his vocal ensemble have dedicated to musical portraits of various countries.
Of the seven composers presented here, only Arvo Pärt has broken out onto the international stage. This rich compilation allows one to discover music that is generally rather austere, of great beauty and with a meditative strength and sense of calm that characterises the music of baltic composers. A music which owes a lot to the tenacity of leader and violist Gidon Kremer who has dedicated himself for a long time to the discovery of baltic composers. Audiences from around the world can taste this impressive mix of the old and new, attracting listeners who would never go to concerts.
This new album presents original, rather intense arrangements of folkloric songs by Estonian Veljo Tormis alongside the orchestral and atmospheric work of Latvia’s leading female musician, Maija Einfelde. Arvo Pärt's exhilarating cantata Dopo la vittoria forms an arc until it reaches total silence in his final choral work And I heard a Voice. Pēteris Vasks is represented with his moving ballad Litene, which commemorates victims of the fight for the liberation of Lithuania. Emerging from a particularly active musical breeding ground, are three young composers that complete this fascinating offering. © François Hudry/Qobuz