Arvo Pärt might be considered as the main composer of contemporary sacred music. He is strongly influenced by the minimalist movement & Gregorian chant.

In 1958, he entered at the Tallinn Conservatoire & he became famous through USSR with his composition 'Our Garden'. At the beginning of the seventies, he began to use serialism in his works but he stopped. An interest for Gregorian chant & medieval music then brought a new dimension to his music.