Composer Arvo Pärt and conductors Neeme Järvi and Tõnu Kaljuste are among the nominees of the Grammy Awards 2014.
Composer Arvo Pärt’s album “Adam’s Lament” has been nominated in the Best Contemporary Classical Composition category. Recorded with Pärt’s active participation in the resonant 13th-century church of St. Nicholas in Tallinn, that surrounds the singing with a hazy echo, the album conveys a feeling of partaking of ancient religious rites in a sacred space. At the beginning of the year, the BBC chose Adam’s Lament as its recording of the month for January 2013.
Conductor Tõnu Kaljuste has been nominated in the Best Choral Performance category for his work on Arvo Pärt’s “Adam’s Lament”, which was recorded with the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, the Sinfonietta Riga, the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, the Latvian Radio Choir and the Vox Clamantis ensemble.
Conductor Neeme Järvi has been nominated in the Best Orchestral Performance category for “Atterberg: Orchestral Works Vol. 1”, recorded with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, and in the Best Choral Performance category for “Parry: Works For Chorus & Orchestra” – recorded with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the BBC National Chorus Of Wales.
The 56th annual Grammy Awards will be held on 26 January 2014, in Los Angeles, USA.
With it’s tiny population of 1,3 million and about 70 percent of them being native Estonians only, it’s fair to say, this is a nation of musical geniuses.