Spiegel im Speigel

Arvo Pärt wrote the minimalist composition Spiegel im Spiegel (Mirror in the Mirror) in 1978 shortly before he left his homeland. Although born in 1935 in a free Estonia, Pärt’s country endured Soviet occupation from 1940 until 1991. He could easily have been stifled by the narrow-minded artistic dictates that filtered out from Moscow. But early work as an engineer with Estonian Radio brought him into contact with influential musicians and filmmakers. By the time Pärt graduated from the Tallinn Conservatory in 1963, he had already received numerous commissions for stage and film scores. He hungered for exposure to western Europe’s avant-garde and remained on the cutting edge among Estonian composers.
His first mature works show the obvious influence of Prokofiev and Shostakovich, but he soon delved into serial techniques—perhaps the most strictly controlled compositional system. However, he quickly turned about-face to experiment with freer collage principles. Reception was mixed, and Pärt himself likely felt some discomfort with his new direction. He then entered a period of self-imposed “contemplative silence” (1968-71) during which time he studied Medieval and Renaissance vocal music. His style changed noticeably, but it was the second such hiatus (1972-76) that proved life altering. In those pivotal years Pärt found his voice: mystical, minimalist, and completely original. He calls his technique “tintinnabulation,” referring to the sound of many small bells. As he puts it:

“I have discovered that it is enough when a single note is beautifully played. This one note, or a silent beat, or a moment of silence, comforts me. I work with very few elements—with one voice, two voices. I build with primitive materials—with the triad, with one specific tonality. The three notes of a triad are like bells and that is why I call it tintinnabulation.”

This new technique opened the floodgates of inspiration. Several of the composer’s best and most enduring works were written in 1977 immediately following the second “contemplative silence.” His music spread outside the Soviet Union; the composer and his family were not far behind, emigrating to Vienna and eventually West Berlin in 1980. From that day to the present, Pärt has been perhaps the most successful and recognizable composers of spiritual music.
Tintinnabulation functions throughout Spiegel im Spiegel, where a modicum of musical materials produces deeply moving results. The title refers to the infinity of images produced by parallel plane mirrors. Each of the two instruments has a single, distinct role throughout the roughly eight-minute work: the piano plays rising triads in steady quarter notes, punctuated at times by very high and very low bell tones, while the cello sings rising and falling F-major scales. The overall effect borders on hypnotism, and with sufficient attention new patterns and relations present themselves to the mind. The result is something akin to prolonged study of abstract art or a slow-motion drive through a subtly changing landscape.
With such resonances, it is little wonder that Spiegel im Spiegel has been immensely popular in recent film scores. The challenges for the performers are fewer but more exacting: perfect evenness of tone and articulation, absolute precision in rhythm, tempo, and dynamic control. Hearing this piece, especially in live performance, it is hard not to draw into one’s self. Its austerity, like the barrenness Pärt felt during his “contemplative silence,” translates directly to us and we are moved to a deep state of reflection. In the rush of our daily lives, such artistic immediacy carries profound power and meaning.

(c) Jason Stell