Estonian Arvo Pärt listed as most performed living composer

Estonian Arvo Pärt has been ranked as the world’s most performed living composer for 2015, according to statistics from the classical event database Bachtrack.

The report was compiled based on information regarding the most performed composers at musical events around the world, as part of Bachtrack’s annual comprehensive set of classical music statistics.

This is the fifth consecutive year that Arvo Pärt has claimed the top spot on the list of most performed contemporary composers. He was followed by US composers John Adams and John Williams.

“Arvo Pärt continues to be the most performed contemporary concert composer, leagues ahead of John Adams and John Williams,” stated Mark Pullinger, classical music and opera editor at Bachtrack.

The most performed composers in general were Mozart, Beethoven and Bach, as has been the case in previous years.

Born in the town of Paide, central Estonia, in 1935, Arvo Pärt is a composer of classical and sacred music, often identified with the school of minimalism and inspired partly by Gregorian chant. His major works include the violin concerto Tabula Rasa (1977), Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten (1977), Magnificat-Antiphones (1988) and The Beatitudes (1991).

Source: ERR