Open To The World ’24: Christopher Tin, LSSO, Bel Canto Choir Vilnius & Friends

Bel Canto Choir Vilnius proudly presented a once-in-a-lifetime experience: the first-ever live performance of Christopher Tin’s iconic video game and cinematic music in the Baltics and Nordics, right here in Vilnius!

Exclusive Experience and Holiday Spirit in Vilnius

Christopher Tin’s music has transcended borders, with millions worldwide streaming his compositions. Joining this global phenomenon, a team of over 150 singers and musicians from Lithuania, the USA, and Sweden performed his most renowned works at the LSSO Concert Hall in Vilnius.

The concert commenced with the Nordic-Baltic premiere of the composer’s latest large-scale work, The Lost Birds (for choir, vocal ensemble, and orchestra). This piece, more than just a composition, is a profound social and environmental message, a musical tribute to bird species decimated by human activity. It’s an evocative, poignant, and cinematic composition that honors the once-abundant flocks whose songs have faded. It underscores the fragility of our existence on this planet, reminding us that our actions have consequences.

The concert’s second part featured a selection from Christopher Tin’s larger song cycles. Popular pieces from the composer’s world-famous, Grammy-winning albums were performed live for the first time in the region. For instance, Baba Yetu, from the album Calling All Dawns, was composed for the video game Civilization IV and became a hit song with hundreds of millions of streams worldwide. The piece has become a modern choral standard and made music history, too – it is the first piece written for a video game to win a Grammy Award. Tin’s multilingual song cycle Calling All Dawns also won him a second Grammy Award for Best Classical Album.

A One-of-a-Kind Night in the Baltics and Nordics

The concert will also feature works from another of the composer’s world-renowned albums, To Shiver the Sky. This oratorio explores the history of flight and humanity’s quest to conquer the sky. Eleven renowned astronomers, inventors, visionaries, and pilots reflect on our relentless drive to explore the universe, defy earthly bonds, and find our place among the stars.

The album’s highlight and the concert’s final performance is “Sogno di Volare,” a hit with hundreds of millions of streams. Written for the video game Civilization VI, this composition musically illustrates Leonardo da Vinci’s writings on flight. The piece is based on the concept of exploration: physically, in seeking out new lands, and intellectually, in seeking out new frontiers of science, technology, and the humanities.

Christopher Tin’s work is a testament to the power of music to unite. Performed in many languages, including English, Latin, Italian, German, French, Polish, Sanskrit, and more, it speaks to our shared human experience, transcending differences in race, culture, and religion.

Concert Program

First Half of the Show

The Lost Birds:

Flocks a Mile Wide
The Saddest Noise
Bird Raptures
A Hundred Thousand Birds
Wild Swans
Intermezzo
Thus In The Winter
There Will Come Soft Rains
All That Could Never Be Said
I Shall Not See The Shadows
In The End
Hope Is The Thing With Feathers

Second Half of the Show

Baba Yetu
Kia Hora Te Marino
Daedalus and Icarus
The Fall
Astronomy
Iza Ngomso
Haf Gengr Hridum
Waloyo Yamoni
Sogno di Volare

Artists & Performers

Christopher Tin (US), Composer & Conductor.
Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, Artistic Director Gintaras Rinkevičius.
Bel Canto Choir Vilnius, Artistic Director Milda Švelnienė.
A Scalpella Choir (SE), Artistic Director Rasmus Krigström.
Duodeco Vocal Ensemble (LT), Artistic Director Povilas Vanžodis.
Jamal Moore (US), Soloist.
Tomas Pavilionis (LT), Soloist.
Roimata Kautai and Aritaku Robens (UK), Maori haka performers.
Concert Conductor Christopher Tin.

Bel Canto Choir Vilnius’ artistic director Milda Švelnienė, choirmasters Raminta Gocentienė and Povilas Vanžodis, vocal coaches Eglė Stundžiaitė and Eimantas Bešėnas. The concert producers: Audrius Valatkevičius (Bel Canto Choir Vilnius) and Claire Long (Music Productions, UK).

Sponsors & Partners

Open To The World 2024

Bel Canto Choir Vilnius’ Open To The World Festival is a unique vocal-choir music project in Lithuania that has become a cherished tradition. It aims to showcase unique modern content and the world’s finest choirs, vocal ensembles, and composers. The festival promotes cultural and choral music innovation and fosters cooperation between Lithuanian and international musicians. It also serves as a platform to nurture Western culture, create music, and grow together.

Born in 2018, Open To The World will present five concerts featuring over 200 singers and musicians this year. The lineup includes two-time Grammy winner, composer, and conductor Christopher Tin (US), Duodeco Vocal Ensemble (LT), Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, A Scalpella Choir (SE), soloists Jamal Moore (US) and Tomas Pavilionis (LT), one of the world’s most renowned vocal ensembles, The Real Group (SE), the barbershop vocal ensemble Lemon Squeezy (SE), vocalist and guitarist Marius Beck (NO), and Lithuania’s premier boys’ choir, Dagilėlis, among others.

The project is sponsored by engineering, prefab, and construction company INHUS, the Business Garden Vilnius office park developed by Vastint Lithuania, the largest logistics and industrial property developers in the Baltic States, SIRIN Development, and the Vilnius City Municipality. LRT TV is the information partner, and Ogilvy is the advertising partner.