One of the things I love about Plough Publishing is that they have such a variety of books. I was invited to read this graphic novel. I had never heard of Arvo Part, but now I have and I have listened to his music. It is brilliant!

The story of his life and composing was done via a graphic novel and in black and white. I think its starkness also brought a richness to the story. I loved the format of the book. This was after all a Soviet run country. Estonia is no longer a part of Russia . They declared their independence in 1991, but from 1940 on, they had been annexed by Russia. Communism was a force and even upon music.

I enjoyed the story of Arvo Part and his struggle with music and the State and his genius. This book has sparked my interest in Arvo Parks music and the country he came from.

Thank you Plough Publishing and NetGalley for this early read.

Between Two Sounds is an illustrated book about the life of Estonian composer Arvo Pärt and his musical journey from childhood into adulthood. It is not a traditional biography and not necessarily what I would recommend to someone completely new to the composer, but it was interesting to read and visually beautiful. I have long been a fan of Pärt's work and knew little of his life, his experience in Soviet Estonia or his musical journey and evolution. Seeing his defiant character described so vividly was interesting and enlightening.

I think ultimately the book would be hard for me to recommend cause the subject and the presentation is so niche. If you were visiting Estonia I could see this being a nice souvenir but due to the format it doesn't go into detail into his life and moves fairly quick. The illustrations do a great job of showing the effects of his music, how his compositions fill the space and the audience reaction - which is really impressive.

I was intrigued to hear more about his spiritual approach to music and the book made me want to look further for answers, because unfortunately it didn't have them all for me. I think if I was an Estonian reader who was already familiar with his life and Estonia's history the book wouldn't feel as lacking but it does feel like there are some things that slip through the cracks when you don't walk into this book with much prior context.

In this graphic biography for YA and adults, Sildre managed two very difficult tasks: he presented the life of a composer I wasn't familiar with in a way that kept me wanting to know more, and he found ways to represent music and interior thoughts graphically. Pärt may be one of the least known, most played composers in the world. While I had never listened to Pärt's music before, this book had me searching for him online. Recommended both to music lovers and to those interested in Estonian artistic life during the Communist era.

This graphic novels takes you into the life of Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, this was my introduction to his music which some I've heard prior unbeknownst to me. The graphic novel takes you through his life, on how he came to love music, his ups and downs with life, illness, social issues and communism and escaping from it, all while also being a true artist and a revolutionary to his own beat. In the few pages a lot was said and felt, not only did it educate me on part of world history I had no knowledge of but introduced me to a new wave of sounds that I'll be adding to my playlists, his music is an experience, a tale told and this graphic novel did an excellent job at translating that. I was given the chance to read this thanks to NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

I got an ARC of this book.

I have read almost every other book put out by this publisher. I was ready. This is by far my favorite. Not only is the art more approachable, the text is easier to read. It just worked so much better as a graphic novel than the others have. That alone made me devour this book.

The story was easy to follow, which is a huge plus in a biography. I will admit I have no idea who the composer was before I started reading. I was just excited to see another graphic novel from this publisher. I feel like I know a lot more and am very interested in his music. I ended up putting on youtube compilations of some of his work so I can maybe hear what was being described. It is still way beyond me, but the story did not suffer for my lack of musical knowledge.

I just really liked this book. It felt approachable. It felt well done. It really just worked as a graphic novel and as a biography. It was a wonderful read and I am glad I got a chance to read it. I will be recommending this to my people like like biographies or want to try non-fiction graphic novels.

This was interesting because it wasn't just about this guy, but Estonia and its history. I enjoy learning history by focusing on how events affected one person, and this was an interesting story. The artwork has an odd monochromatic style, and it's just as interesting as the words. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

It was interesting learning the composer. I enjoyed the set up of the novel. I enjoyed how the graphics displaying the music.

Since users of services such as Spotify no longer receive the extensive liner notes which used to accompany LPs and CDs of serious music, this book's information is valuable. I'm afraid, though, that in this case the graphic material doesn't contribute a great deal.

Between Two Sounds is a very innovative graphic novel. I loved the way the illustrations were laid out and how they cut across the page in creative ways. The art style was very nice as well.

Between Two Sounds by Joonas Sildre was a wonderful telling of part of Arvo Pärt’s life. The story was well written and easy to follow. From the beginning of his life to when he was sent out of Soviet controlled Estonia to him finally being allowed to return home, the story follows the arc of his music technique and personal religious philosophy. The depictions of the music, how he wanted it heard, and to some extent how he notated it were excellent. The author did a great job expressing the philosophy that Pärt wanted to express in his music.The illustrations overall are delightful and tell the story nicely. I highly recommend this book for all classical music lovers.

3.75 stars
🌕🌕🌕🌖

🎯 Target Audience
- People who are open to know more about Northern European musician
- Folks who are curious about the political environment in Estonia back in the days

🧠 My thoughts
Thanks to this graphic novel, I now know Arvo Pärt and his music. The artwork was amazing, it was easy to read and creative. Through the artwork, the author delivered the messages more comprehensively. It made the book more lyrical, poetic, and artistic.

There were not so many things I could complain about. Maybe the pace was too steady and there was quite a lot of information to digest, it lost my attention once in a while.

Thanks NetGalley, Plough Publising publisher, and the authors for a great advance copy of the book in exchange for my honest review!

Between Two Sounds is interesting both in terms of content and visually but I am not sure I really understood some of the musical ideas and elements.

The publishers description, however, is spot on: "paints an atmospheric portrait of a restless artist who does not shy away from confronting state control or his own internal contradictions." And that is really what came through to me, the sense that this remarkable artist was being smothered by the authoritarian politics and culture the Soviet Union imposed on Estonia. He was not free in his music, his faith, in the way he saw himself and the world, and so the travails of any artist pushing the boundaries was compounded by the pressure of living under the weight of authoritarianism.

This eventually led to Part being forced to leave his country, his friends and the world he knew for an unknown future in exile. That he was able to find such a future and become one of the most impactful musicians of his time is remarkable. And it is gratifying to know that he was eventually able to return home to Estonia. The story is likely most powerful for those interested in Estonia and/or music during this time but it is a reminder of the power of art and human creativity to break through the ugliness of tyranny.

Reading and reviewing a graphic novel about the life of Arvo Pärt was not on my NetGalley bingo card, but here we are. This fascinating book was written by Jones Sildre - who I assume also illustrated because there is no separate artist listed - and originally published by the Arvo Pärt Centre. It is now being released by Plough Publishing House in an English translation by Adam Cullen. I found it interesting that the original Estonian version was published in 2018, the same year the Pärt Centre opened to the public. This indicates to me how important to Pärt this book was (and is), and how much the composer felt it reflected his life.

In Between Two Sounds, we learn about Pärt's early call to music, his struggles with conformity, and his musical training. Initially, his career focused on film and recorded music, but throughout his life he continued to experiment with a style and form of music that pleased him. He found what he was looking for when he discovered the Russian Orthodox Church, and traced Christian musical expression down to what he felt was its essence, as found in Gregorian Chant. This led him to eventually develop his unique tintinnabuli style.

His life was also shaped by his relationship to the Soviet Union, which conquered Estonia in 1944. Refusing to give in to Soviet demands for nationalistic music composed under strict rules, he eventually was forced to emigrate to Austria, eventually returning to Estonia when its independence was restored in 2010.

The story is fascinating, but the book is even more interesting than a simple narrative would have been. The illustrations serve to illustrate Pärt's experimentation and composition in creative ways. Throughout, Pärt's thought process is central in a way that could only have been possible with the composer's intense collaboration.

Arvo Part, now in his late 80s, has been through most of the 2000s the most performed living composer in the world (surpassed in 2019 by John Williams). I had been familiar with his work, but this wonderful book gave me new insights. Many thanks to Plough and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I am not usually that much into fiction that discusses religion extensively and surprisingly this was one of those books, as this was a key element in Arvo Pärt’s life. Despite that, the execution of the book is outstanding, in my opinion, as it's a great source when it comes to learning about the history, the artist and the process of creating art.

The book has amazing artwork, not through the style itself, but due to the representation of musical elements. I would say that it is very creative and it really places the reader inside the story - and it's even more exciting if paired with the pieces of the composer.

There are also many great quotes that are really inspirational - about art:

"In truth, art is nothing more than the shaping of ideas or intellectual values into an artistic form; their expression by artistic means."

"If a composer wants to create music, then he must love every sound."

"Man is not a creator of sounds, but their mediator."

"The human voice is one of the most perfect musical instruments on Earth. And that instrument must be tuned... Man's soul is what must be tuned!"

"It is a need to concentrate on each sound... just like on every blade of grass... so that every blade of grass becomes as important as a flower."

- and about life in general:

"Conscience is, perhaps, a person's greatest teacher. The way you see yourself. What you are not, but what you would like to be."

"To be born to peace, you must die to disquiet."

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this. The art was well suited to the story it was telling and I really liked the way the whole book was formatted. I’d never heard of Arvo Pärt prior to reading this and knew very little about Estonia other than its geographical location so everything was new. I found this didn’t take away from my enjoyment at all, there’s enough information that I felt informed without being overwhelmed. I’m listening to Für Alina as I write this review and it’s cool to know the backstory for it. Overall highly recommend! I am counting this as Country #43 for Read Around the World challenge :)

Thanks to NetGalley, the Publisher, and the Author for an ARC of this book in exchange for my review.

"Between Two Sounds: Arvo Pärt's Journey to His Musical Language" by Aile Tooming explores the life of a visionary composer who found his unique voice in the silence between sounds.

The graphic novel introduces how historical and life events shaped and affected Arvo Pärt. A visual language for sound throughout the book, such as reoccurring lines and circles convey the feeling of the composer's music.

The art and flow of the panels is captivating, informative and inspiring.

I had heard some of Arvo Part's choral music before reading this book, but knew very little about this composer or his work. So, I pulled up the music mentioned in this lovely graphic biography and listened as I read, an experience I highly recommend. The artwork in this book is clever and does a great job of telling this story, even conveying a sense of the music and sounds the story is in part about. I really enjoyed this book, and the excuse to explore music by this excellent composer.

Following Arvo Pärt's journey thought life and music.

This graphic novel is easy to follow, beautifully illustrated and so worth a read.

Thank you Plough Publishing House for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
#BetweenTwoSounds #NetGalley.

The world’s greatest living composer, born into an Estonia that is absorbed into the Soviet Union. This book covers Arvo Part’s struggle under the communist regime as he transitions from avant garde iconoclast into a purveyor of music that elevates holiness and has a through line to the world’s oldest existing Christian music. Eventually morphing these two polar opposites into a style of music all his own. While he pursues these dreams he must contend with a government and an academy that has little appreciation for his developing sound.

I didn't know who Arvo Pärt was before reading this book. In fact, I didn't know any Estonian composers. This graphic novel goes through his life, his thoughts and his way of understanding music. In the context of the Soviet Union, it also portrays the censorship that most artists suffered during that time. I found this to be quite an interesting read, since I love learning about topics I don't know much about. Still, I also found it a little bit dense sometimes, and I maybe would have enjoyed knowing more about his personal life (how he felt about his children, etc.). One thing I really appreciated is how music and sounds are graphically included in the book.