Estimated duration

2 h, incl. intermission

Organizer

Helsingin juhlaviikot

Helsinki Festival is celebrating the 90th anniversary of Estonian master composer Arvo Pärt.

The Latvian violinist and conductor legend Gidon Kremer brings his chamber ensemble Kremerata Baltica to the Helsinki Festival for the first time. The ensemble will perform two concerts at the Helsinki Music Centre, the second of which celebrates the 90th anniversary of Estonian master composer Arvo Pärt.

Composed in 1977, Tabula Rasa is one of Arvo Pärt’s most beloved and frequently performed works. Pärt dedicated the piece to Kremer, who also premiered it as a soloist in Tallinn. In 1984, Pärt and Kremer recorded an unforgettable version with Alfred Schnittke and the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra for ECM, making it one of the most well-known and best-selling albums of contemporary classical music.

At the Helsinki Festival, Gidon Kremer and Kremerata Baltica will perform Tabula Rasa in honor of Pärt’s jubilee. Kremer has crafted a fascinating program around this hypnotic and minimalist masterpiece, featuring works by Bach, Schubert, Weinberg, Pletnyov, and Shostakovich, all resonating with Pärt’s timeless composition.

Kremerata Baltica
Gidon Kremer, violin
Second soloist to be announced later

Programme:

J.S. Bach: Chaconne, arranged for strings by Gidon Kremer
Arvo Pärt: Tabula Rasa

Eine (andere) Winterreise (after Franz Schubert):
Franz Schubert (1797): Menuet, D 89
Raminta Šerkšnytė (1975): Winternacht for violin and strings
Franz Schubert (1797): Trio 1, D 89
Victor Kissine (1953): Frühlingstraum for violin and strings
Franz Schubert (1797): Trio 2, D 89
Georgijs Osokins (1995): Auf dem Flusse for violin and strings
Franz Schubert (1797): Menuet, D 89

Mieczysław Weinberg: Aria op. 9 for strings
Mihail Pletnyov: Z-Defilee for violin and strings
Dmitri Shostakovich: “Lebyadkin Verses” for violin and strings, arranged by Yevgeniy Sharlat, dedicated to Gidon Kremer and Kremerata Baltica