It has become de rigeur these days to juxtapose 20th century with Medieval and Renaissance music, given their certain style similarities of slow harmonic motion and virtuosity. What is not so typical, however, was the contrast in the program of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and Tallinn Chamber Orchestra in St. Ignatius Church Saturday, between the high Baroque music of J.S. Bach and Arvo Pärt, a composer whose style has been heavily influenced by Eastern Orthodox chant, minimalism, and New Age music. This pairing of the Bach and the Pärt halves of the program at St. Ignatius Church on Saturday night met with a modicum of success but left many questions.

The Estonian forces, under the direction of Tõnu Kaljuste, have risen to a high degree of fame through their concert tours and recordings, especially via the works of their fellow Estonian composer, Pärt. Yet, ironically, when the first half began with Bach's Cantata 4, Christ lag in Todesbanden, the choral timbre was not the one we hear on their recordings. And this was a highly restrained version of Bach.

Yes, the instrumentalists played without vibrato in an attempt to imitate one notion of how baroque instruments were played but rarely achieved a volume greater than mezzo piano. They were well in tune, but physically and aurally less prominent than the choir, which stood in front of them. The choir itself, moreover, was quite underpowered. It seems, too, that the acoustics were so dampened by the carpet and the full-house audience that the singers at one end of the choir could not easily hear those at the other end. There were in fact moments in which they were out of synch. One could easily overlook these problems if the performers had demonstrated a passion for this music.

Harnoncourt's famous dictum that "baroque music follows the nuances and inflections of speech" was lost in this interpretation. However, Kaljuste's use of entire sections of the choir to sing the arias and duets did achieve an unusual and charming effect.

Bach's motet Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, next, was far more engaging. Tempi were convincing, shadings of words and phrases were elegant, and there was much more energy coming from the performers. The closing "hallelujah" section, deftly sung, was especially thrilling.

Perhaps it was the changed location of the singers, who, following the Bach, moved some 30 feet back to the high altar, or perhaps it was the affinity the singers may have felt for their native composer, but in the second half of the concert they produced yet another choral timbre. This was the "classic" tone that has come to be recognized as the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir sound.

Beginning with the very haunting Kondakion and Ikos from Kanon pokajanen ("Canon of Repentance"), we were transported to a different world and a place beyond time. Pärt has a genius for evoking the awesome sense of his spiritual beliefs. And these two brief a cappella pieces served to help those present experience the impact of "the bitter hour of death." The Berliner Messe, stark in its beauty, and at the same time, rich in its complexity, followed, closing the program.

Pärt's music, in its unique style, is difficult to explain to those who have never heard it. The choir produced a rich, dark tone while the orchestra produced a vibratoless clarity and complexity. The result was a magnificent collage of sound that seemed to evoke a wintry Estonia, an inspired believer, and a composer with much to say.

None of this, however, answered the initial question: why did they start their program with toned-down Bach?

(Jonathan Dimmock is a freelance conductor, organist, accompanist, coach, and continuo player.)

©2000 Jonathan Dimmock, all rights reserved