The Estonian Festival Orchestra was founded by Paavo Järvi in 2011 as the resident orchestra of the Pärnu Music Festival. Järvi’s long-dreamed ambition of creating a hand-picked orchestra, bringing together the best of Estonian talent and leading musicians from around the world, has since led to international acclaim: ​“one of the world’s great orchestras” (The Arts Desk, UK), ​“with a truly breathtaking energy and virtuosity” (Diapason, France) and ​“passionate music making” (El Pais, Spain).

In January 2018, the Estonian Festival Orchestra made its first European tour with concerts in Berlin, Brussels, Cologne, Luxembourg, Vienna and Zürich. In the same year, it debuted at the Hamburg Elbphilharmonie and London Royal Albert Hall, making history as the first Estonian ensemble to perform at the BBC Proms. Since then, it has performed regularly throughout Europe, Japan and Korea and in 2025, makes its New York debut, headlining Carnegie Hall’s 90^th birthday tribute to Arvo Pärt.

This Autumn, Alpha Classics releases Paavo Järvi and the Estonian Festival Orchestra’s sixth album, devoted to the music of Arvo Pärt. Previous releases on Alpha Classics are; Shostakovich Symphony No.6 and Sinfoniette (2018); Mythos, dedicated to the music of Erkki-Sven Tüür in celebration of his 60^th birthday (2019); Estonian Premieres (2022) highlighting the music of Tõnu Kõrvits, Ülo Krigul, Helena Tulve, Tauno Aints and Lepo Sumera; Kratt (2023) featuring works by Eduard Tubin, Witold Lutosławski and Grażyna Bacewicz; and Ship of Fools premiering new orchestral works by Jüri Reinvere.