Musica Viva NY presents Curse Upon Iron – Pärt, Tormis, Vasks, & Ešenvalds
$50 ($30 student/arts worker)
- Trent Johnson, organ
- Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez, piano & conductor
Arvo Pärt — The Beatitudes
Arvo Pärt — Für Alina
Ēriks Ešenvalds — A Drop in the Ocean
Arvo Pärt — The Deer's Cry
Veljo Tormis — Raua Needmine ("Curse Upon Iron")
Imant Raminsh / Traditional — Blow, Wind
Nomeda Valančiūtė — Lietus Plonom Stiklinėm Kojom ("The Rain on Thin Glass Legs")
Onutė Narbutaitė — Summertime ("Vasara")
Andris Dzenītis — Peace with Living Eyes
The Baltic States—Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania—are home to some of the most exquisite choral music ever composed. Choral singing has been deeply woven into Baltic culture, serving as both a unifying tradition and a powerful tool for cultural resilience. From informal singing at town meetings to acts of defiance against oppressive regimes, song has preserved the region's identity through challenging times. These songs pass down stories and traditions from one generation to the next, fostering a rich legacy of musical excellence. This enduring tradition has given rise to generations of exceptional composers from each nation. Musica Viva NY proudly presents a selection of extraordinary choral works from this corner of the world.
About Musica Viva NY
Musica Viva NY is a non-profit arts organization that was established nearly 50 years ago. Its mission is to bring world-class music to a wide community through an annual concert series, an active community engagement program, and an ambitious artistic vision. Under the baton of Artistic Director Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez since 2015, Musica Viva NY strives to offer joy, solace and renewal in a complex world by presenting new compositions and classic masterworks in transformative interpretations that ennoble the human spirit.
Musica Viva NY's superb chamber choir and world class collaborating instrumentalists make their concert home in Manhattan's historic All Souls Church. It regularly combines its presentation of the classical repertoire with less widely known works, as part of its commitment to perform the works of living American composers, women composers and composers of color, including works that address social, racial or environmental issues. Composers whose works have been featured in recent Musica Viva NY performances include Florence Price, Alexandra T Bryant, Steve Reich, Frank Ticheli, Missy Mazzoli, Alice Walker, Joel Thompson, and Jesse Montgomery.
Musica Viva NY has commissioned and premiered numerous works by contemporary composers including Bora Yoon, Seymour Bernstein, Elena Ruehr, Joseph Turrin, Bruce Saylor, Jean-Louis Petit, Eugenio Toussaint, Gilda Lyons, Richard Einhorn, Trent Johnson and Trevor Weston.
Beyond high-quality concert performances, Musica Viva NY also serves the communities of New York City through a growing variety of rich community engagement programs. Currently, Musica Viva NY partners with New York city public schools, extracurricular youth ensembles, New York Public Library branches and the All Souls' Monday Night Hospitality dinner program, offering free performances, artist clinics, interactive workshops, and more. Musica Viva NY has nurtured young artists throughout its half century of existence. Great musicians who have been Musica Viva NY singers and soloists include the Metropolitan Opera stars Samuel Ramey and Renée Fleming, and Broadway's Aladdin, Michael Maliakel.
The organization was founded as an annual concert series in 1977 by Walter Klauss, who directed the group for 38 years, and adopted the name "Musica Viva" in 1985. Under Walter Klauss’ baton the choir toured in Paris (2004), Germany and Czechia (2006), and Italy (2012).
https://musicaviva.org/