Starting Points for Listening
 

       If you are not familiar with Pärt's music and would like to know where to begin, there are several recordings that I can recommend. If you are more inclined toward choral music I can without hesitation suggest that you first purchase Te Deum (ECM 1505). This powerful work is an excellent introduction to Pärt's tintinnabuli style. Also on this CD are the ubiquitous Magnificat and the equally exquisite Silouan's Song and Berliner Messe. I would also highly recommend two new releases. The first is De Profundis (Harmonia Mundi 907182) and the second is Beatus (Virgin Classics 7243 5 45276 2 3). Both of these discs are quite excellent and offer a healthy sampling of Pärt's smaller scale choral works.

        For a fine collection of orchestral and chamber works, I would suggest starting with Tabula Rasa (ECM 1275). As far as I know, this was the very first worldwide commerical recording of any of Pärt's music. This CD includes not only what many call Pärt's most famous work (Tabula Rasa) but also two transcriptions of Fratres and the ethereal Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten.


 

       It is important to note that not all of Pärt's works were written in the same familiar style that many have been introduced to in recent years. In the late 1950's and throughout the 1960's, Pärt experimented with neoclassicism as well as twelve tone, serial, aleatory, and collage techniques. These works are very different from compositions that were written after 1975; all of which are considered to be written in a style that Pärt calls tintinnabulation. When purchasing CD's, it is best to research the composition dates of the works in question or you may take home a recording that is very different from what you expect. For your information, these dates are listed on the composition pages. If you are not interested in hearing Pärt's twelve tone, serial, neoclassic, aleatory, or collage works, I would suggest that you stay away from these known recorded compositions:

       There are many other early works, most of which have not been recorded or appear briefly on obscure European releases. If in doubt, please check the composition pages for dates.
      Let me clarify that although I generally guide new listeners away from these works, I personally am fascinated by them and feel that it is imperative to closely examine these compositions when putting Pärt's canon of work into perspective. Like much modernist music these works can be difficult to listen to. However, when studied closely one can begin to appreciate not only Pärt's incredible grasp of counterpoint, serial techniques, compositional balance, and orchestration but also the musical value in the pieces themselves. I highly recommend that any serious listener tackle these works in order to discover that value and to shed greater light on Pärt's output as a whole.
       If you are interested in hearing the work that first pointed toward a new and tonal style, I highly recommend the Symphony No. 3 of 1971. Those who are familiar with the works of composers such as Machaut, Leonin and Perotin will be immediately struck by this piece. The melodic style can be traced directly to Notre Dame organum, while the rhythmic structure is more classical. The piece is a radical departure from the serial and collage works that preceded it and yet is more purely "medieval" than the tintinnabuli works that follow it. It clearly stands alone as an important link between two very different compositional periods.