The Estonian Piano Orchestra

The Estonian Piano Orchestra

The Estonian Piano Orchestra was founded in the 2002 International Piano Festival KLAVER with eight pianists of different generations who play in four piano duets. Since then the Piano Orchestra has performed different programmes in prestigious Estonia Concert Hall and many other cities. In 2011,the Orchestra performed with great success in London in the festival of Estonian music. Within their programmes the pianists perform music from different periods and countries. Their programmes include music by J.S. Bach, Viennese classics and romantics and contemporary composers with a special emphasis on modern Estonian composers. In their concerts, they create different kinds of “surprise ensembles”ranging from 2 to 8 pianists on 1 to 4 pianos.

The Orchestra is led by renowned pianist Lauri Väinmaa. He was a former pupil of Mikhail Pletnev at the Tchaikovsky Conservatoire in Moscow and also studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Christopher Elton and at the Tallinn Conservatory with Bruno Lukk. His extensive repertoires range from Bach to contemporary and include all Beethoven sonatas and Concertos as well as the complete piano music of Arvo Pärt and Alfred Schnittke.

I

Overture to the opera "Ruslan and Lyudmila" (1842)

"Richard III", symphonic poem op.11 (1858)

Concerto for Eight Pianists on Four Pianos op.126 (2005)

Bolero (1928)

II

Overture to the opera "Tannhauser"(1845)

Voices of the Universe op.88 (2002), Symphony for 4 Pianos, 8 Pianists and 16 Hands