1. Arvo PärtTabula Rasa
You cannot go wrong with Arvo Pärt. All his compositions, the entire body of recordings – I cannot recommend them enough – they are so sophisticated and minimalist, they have a sense of restraint in which everything has a meaning. Tabula Rasa is a masterpiece, and every time I listen it tells a different story. The dynamics and skill are just unbelievable and it is what woos me every time. They convey the sensitivity of the composition and not just on a technical level, but also emotionally, as you go through all these different feelings and corridors.
The whole concept of the expression [“Tabula Rasa”, meaning blank slate] is my preferred definition as this absence of preconceived ideas, and it is also this psychological state when the human mind does not have any preconceived notions. You are basically free and open. This is my particular favourite recording of that piece [with violinist Gidon Kreme and pianist Keith Jarrett], there are other documents of it of course, but this particular recording is great.
