Dedication to Arvo Pärt. Presentation of the anniversary CD “Spiegel im Spiegel”

On September 26, pianist Onutė Gražinytė and cellist Edward King return to Paliesius Manor!

The performers will present a program that holds deep personal meaning for them, dedicated to the 90th anniversary of one of our era’s most renowned composers, Arvo Pärt. Structured upon the principle of a mirror reflection, the program takes its name from one of the featured works: “Spiegel im Spiegel” (Eng. “Mirror in the Mirror”).

Bookending the performance are two movements from French composer Olivier Messiaen’s “Quartet for the End of Time.” This work is permeated with profound energy, spirituality, and at times, sheer ecstasy, having been composed under extraordinary and tragic circumstances—while Messiaen was imprisoned in a labor concentration camp in Görlitz (in present-day Germany). Juxtaposed with this are what are perhaps Estonian composer Arvo Pärt’s two most significant chamber works: “Fratres” (Eng. “Brothers”) and “Spiegel im Spiegel.” Embracing the center of the program are J. S. Bach’s Sonata in G Major for the baroque viola da gamba and Alfred Schnittke’s Cello Sonata No. 1. A vivid contrast emerges here: between Bach’s deeply faith-driven music, portraying a soul striving for the divine ideal, and Schnittke’s unyielding realism, which is almost thrown in one’s face, revealing a world seen as if through a shattered mirror. For the very center of the program, we chose the ultimate contrast to music and sound itself—silence, namely, John Cage’s “4’33″.” We interpret this as a moment to find stillness and listen to how the music that has just been played continues to resonate within.

Though the program features only two works by Arvo Pärt himself, the surrounding music opens up his wider spiritual and artistic universe: from Messiaen’s radiant spirituality and Bach’s architectural symmetry to Schnittke’s radical dualities and Cage’s endeavor to hear the meaning of silence. Constructed as a palindrome—a mirror within a mirror—the program moves in a perfect circle, returning to its own beginning. Through these thoughtful juxtapositions, it invites the listener to experience, or perhaps rediscover, the true genius of Arvo Pärt.

Born into a family of musicians in Vilnius, Lithuanian pianist Onutė Gražinytė began her piano studies at the age of five and was soon accepted into the prestigious National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art. She later continued her studies at the Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media (Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover) under Prof. Roland Krüger, and at the Hanns Eisler School of Music in Berlin (Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler), where she studied under Prof. Kirill Gerstein.

Onutė performs worldwide as both a soloist and a chamber musician. She has performed with ensembles such as the Mozarteumorchester Salzburg, the National Orchestra of Lyon, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Basel Symphony Orchestra, the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, Kremerata Baltica, and others. She is frequently invited to perform at festivals across Europe, including the Moravian Autumn Festival and the KlavierOlymp in Bad Kissingen.

Equally at home performing classical and contemporary repertoire, the pianist is particularly interested in projects that explore the expressive possibilities of the piano. Her debut album, “Lamentate,” featuring the music of Arvo Pärt performed with the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, received widespread acclaim in BBC Music Magazine, Pizzicato, and Diapason. Pärt himself praised her, noting: “[She is] a pianist who, despite her young age, has already reached an extraordinary musical maturity. I appreciate her musical sensitivity in performing my works.”

Onutė Gražinytė actively performs as a duo with her husband, cellist Edward King, and is highly regarded for her creative programming and deep musical insights.

New Zealand-born cellist Edward King is a professor of cello at the Leopold Mozart College of Music at the University of Augsburg. He is a laureate of the 11th Witold Lutosławski and the Markneukirchen International Cello Competitions, and was awarded a special prize, presented to him by Krzysztof Penderecki himself, for his interpretation of “Divertimento” at the Penderecki International Cello Competition.

Following his studies with James Tennant, Prof. Julius Berger, and Prof. Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt, Edward King launched a multifaceted career as a performer, educator, and curator. Known for his versatility and wide-ranging repertoire, he gravitates toward projects that reinterpret the classical canon through historical, contemporary, and cross-genre perspectives. His premier recording of Arvo Pärt’s “Fratres,” performed alongside Onutė Gražinytė, was praised by Gramophone Magazine: “This is one of the best performances I’ve heard […]; it treads a fine line between delicacy and strength.”

Edward King is also frequently invited to serve on juries and artistic committees. A passionate educator, he conducts masterclasses and seminars worldwide, supporting music education initiatives in Italy, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, and among the indigenous communities of New Zealand.

He is a founding member of the post-genre contemporary music sextet “hear now berlin” and a member of the O/Modernt Chamber Orchestra. The cellist plays a modern German cello crafted by Robert König in 2017.

For these musicians, Paliesius Manor is far more than just another concert hall—it is a place where they have not only experienced many significant and deeply memorable performances, but also celebrated their own wedding.