‘I went to nursery school every day until the end of secondary school!’ Arvo Pärt says and pauses, staring slyly at his listener. ‘My mother worked at a nursery school in Rakvere, and I always went to visit her after my lessons.’ There, the future composer often sat at the piano and played or improvised for his little friends. Arvo Pärt is a composer best known for his 'tintinnabuli' compositions. It is a lesser-known fact that in his earlier years as a composer, he also wrote children's songs and piano pieces along with music for plays and animated films.

This volume, 'Songs from Childhood', contains a selection of Arvo Pärt's music for children from the period 1956-1970. In those years he was involved with several children's studios and theatres as the piano accompanist and composer. Most of his music for children came about by way of improvisation in rehearsals and was only later completed and put on paper. These pieces therefore retain all the spontaneity and playful spirit in which they were created.
'Songs from Childhood' includes a CD of the same name, providing recordings of the songs with new and colourful instrumental accompaniments in the roiginal Estonian language for your enjoyment. These new accompaniments, which are also included as backing tracks on the CD, were arranged by the composer Tauno Aints in collaboration with Arvo Pärt.

The sheet music of these arrangements is available on hire. The piano version doubles as a piano reduction.

• 15 selected pieces for children‘s choir and piano written with all the spontaneity and playful spirit typical of Arvo Pärt‘s music for children
• Includes a CD with full and sing-along versions of the songs
• The recordings of the songs are in Estonian with new and colourful instrumental accompaniments by Tauno Aints in collaboration with Arvo Pärt
• Choral score available here

Ich bin schon groß - I Am Already Big · Lied des Marienkäfers - Ladybird's Song · Die Frösche - Frogs · Lieber Weihnachtsmann, wo bleibst du? - Oh Where Are You Father Christmas? · Der Weihnachtsmann - Santa Claus · Was braust er schön - Let the Snow Swish · Lied des Glühwürmchens - Firefly's Song · Die Puppe hat keinen Namen - The Doll Has No Name · Mamas Kuss - Mommy's Kiss (piano solo) · Liebes Büchlein - The Book · Der Schulweg - Road to School · Dornröschen - Sleeping Beauty · Der kleine Motorroller - The Little Motor-Scooter · Lied des Atömchens - The Song of Atom-Boy · Sommerwalzer - Summer Waltz