His Nordic Light multimedia symphony has been heard at premieres in the USA, Canada, Germany, Latvia and Lithuania, with new performances in other countries often undertaken. His large-scale vocal symphonic work The Pleiades was premiered to great acclaim at the Grant Park Festival, Chicago. Es?envalds also writes ballet and movie scores, and has often written for large national Latvian events.

Es?envalds first came to prominence around the world for his choral compositions, which appear on numerous recordings including from Trinity College Choir, Cambridge and Polyphony, Portland State Chamber Choir, the Choir of the West (Pacific Lutheran University), and Latvian Radio Choir and State Choir Latvia. His many choral premieres have included performances at the BBC Proms and Wigmore Hall in London, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., and the Gewandhaus Leipzig.