Estonian composer Arvo Pärt (b. 1935) composed four symphonies, which are collected here for the first time on a single disc. Together they constitute a fascinating tour through his compositional trajectory over a period of 45 years.

Pärt’s work was by 1960 attracting the censure of the Soviet authorities, who regarded the avant-garde techniques of  Symphony No 1 (1963), which combined serialism with contrapuntal forms, as evidence of ‘Western decadence.’ He continued working with serialism in Symphony No 2 (1966), but the banning of his Credo (1968) coincided with the beginning of a ‘silent’ period, during which Pärt immersed himself in the study of Gregorian chant, medieval music and vocal polyphony, resulting in a radically reconfigured...