Search - Arvo Part, Robert MacDonald, Mark Anderson :: Arvo Pärt: Passio

Clear as a bell

dm | rochester, ny | 05/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first thing to strike me of this recording is that the sound is absolutely perfect, as clear as a bell. The end of each recitation trails and maintains a perfect pitch and flawless tone. Kudos to both the singers and the engineers.



Robert MacDonald is particularly impressive. All soloists are wonderful.



I've also heard the ECM version several times, unfortunately it developed a skip so I decided to try the Naxos version. Both versions are wonderful, thought the sound is clearer on the Naxos version. The ECM version has more reverberation; although this is not a necessarily bad thing. It adds a certain ambience and atmosphere.



Of course the biggest difference is price. The ECM Part CDs are extremely expensive, and, well, we all know about Naxos. So if it's only one version to purchase, it's an easy choice. If you like this particular Passio of Part's, though, you may eventually seek out a used or bargain copy of the ECM version also."

Ultimate expression of system

L. Benjamin | Savannah, GA | 02/21/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Although Norman Lebrecht has criticized this piece as "so regressively reverential that it hardly emerges from the 17th century;" it only sounds superficially as if it had been written in that time period. In fact, it is thoroughly grounded in the sensibility of the 20th century. It is the apotheosis of Pärt's "tintinnabuli" system, here achieving a rigidity reminiscent of the technique of total serialism. This version goes beyond the structure exemplified in the original ECM recording, in that here the composer's plan for the silences between notes is respected. Ironically, the result, for a piece relating St. John's passion, is singularly devoid of that very emotion - at least in the normally understood sense. In its smooth evenness, the passion is understated, serene, unbroken by "events." In the liner notes, Pärt expresses his interest in what happened "before the Big Bang...where God had created the formula" (interestingly, there need be no conflict here between religion and science!). The rules governing the piece's construction were laid out beforehand, and adjusted until the desired outcome was achieved. The result is of interest for its place in the composer's development, and certainly as an experiment, taking this composition method to its ultimate (and logical) conclusion. Starkly uniform throughout, the moment of greatest excitement within the main body of the piece is the word "crucifigeretur," the longest word in the composition, occasioning thereby the furthest movement away from its base note. The piece concludes with a beautiful chorus of Qui passus es pro nobis, Miserere nobis."

A Different Passion

Jay Young | Austin, TX USA | 03/21/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you're looking for a nice passion setting, but something different from Bach, then you can't do much better than Arvo Part's "Passio," which uses his signature sacred minimalism and tintinnabuli. He defines his signature style this way on his website: "Pärt refers to his current style as 'tintinnabuli.' This can be defined as the application of various inversions of a certain chord. Also, it is a word 'which evokes the pealing of bells, the bells' complex but rich sonorous mass of overtones, the gradual unfolding of patterns implicit in the sound itself, and the idea of a sound that is simultaneously static and in flux.'"



"Passio" is a through-composed setting of John 18-19. There are 4 sections, with 50 phrases each, and a final 10-phase sequence. Each section begins with a different solo voice, an instrument then joins it, and this pattern continues until all 8 are sounding. The tonal center is D-A-E-B, a series of overlapping 5ths. Interestingly, Christ has the longest and lowest notes, with E being the tonal center. The music continues in a minimalist fashion until the final 10-phase sequence, when the tonality changes considerably, and the piece concludes in a powerful climactic chord of "amen."



Antony Pitts does a great job in pulling off Part's notoriously difficult music, and making it enjoyable. The choir is well-blended, well-trained, and execute the music beautifully. A must for any music lover looking for a passion setting that's a bit different."