N0 13 2018 Music in Estonia Estonian Music Review Contents Music in Estonia: A Short History 4 Estonian music at the beginning of the new millenium 12 New advent of folk music in Estonian professional music 22 Arvo Pärt Centre – an open meeting place 30 Estonian orchestral scene AD 2017 32 Young musicians are the hallmark of Estonia 40 Estonians and choral music: myths and realities 47 International Music Day – October 1st 54 Estonia – most festivalised country 58 Moorland Elegies – Classical Recording of 2018 65 Estonia programme abroad highlights 2018 66 Music in Estonia, N0 13 Authors 68 Estonian Music Review Published by Estonian Music Council Suur-Karja 23, Tallinn 10148, Estonia E-mail [email protected] www.emc.ee Supported by Estonian Cultural Endowment ISSN 1406- 9490 Editor Tiina Mattisen Copy Editor Kadri Lassmann Translator Wiedemanni Translation Company Design Annamari Kenk, Saara Publishing House Cover photo by Linda Liis Eek 3 Music in TOOMAS SIITAN TOOMAS Estonia: A Short History The story of Estonian music can be of the 13th century. The Cistercian approached from different angles. and Dominican monasteries, estab- Over about a hundred years, the story lished in the 13th century, as well as has been told in a strictly national cathedral schools in emerging towns, framework. According to this story, became hubs of formal education, Johann Valentin Meder’s opera Die Beständige Argenia (1680) was performed in the Estonians became a part of the introducing, among other things, the spring of 2011 by the Opera Studio of the EAMT. European musical culture in the second religious music culture, Gregorian Tallinn City Theatre half of the 19th century, when national chant and, later on, polyphonic choral schools founded in Tartu by Polish in towns. As Estonia belonged to cultural societies started to emerge and singing to Estonia. Records about Jesuits (translators’ seminar in 1585), the same cultural space as northern the kernel of the choral movement was town musicians in Estonia date back as well as Tartu University (1632) and Germany and Scandinavian countries, born, which spread across the country. to the 14th century. Since then, local Tallinn Gymnasium (1631)—both a number of prominent musicians The national cultural societies of the folk music and European art music founded as a response by the Swedes— of the region found employment in time set the scene for national culture existed side by side in Estonia, the provided an important impetus for Estonian towns. Gregor Zuber, one and statehood in their widest sense. latter mainly in towns and manors. the development of written Estonian of the most outstanding violinists of Actually, the history of European The Reformation reached Estonia in language, religious singing in Estonian, northern Europe, and cantor Michael musical culture in Estonian towns dates the 1520s, significantly changing local and musical activities in towns. Hahn, a pupil of Heinrich Schütz, back much further in time, and the religious and educational practices. As lived and worked in Narva in the development of national professional Music instruction held an important a result of the Livonian War (1558– 1660s. Their collaboration produced music in the late 19th century would position in town schools. Pupils 1583), North Estonia fell under a couple of brilliant church cantatas not have been possible without it. performed at major church services, Swedish control, while Saaremaa that have been preserved to this day. singing chorales and performing more While the first evidence of Christian became a Danish possession and Narva was also home to complex musical works. A choir was Ludwig influence in Estonia dates from Poland claimed southern Estonia. Until , who came from a family established in almost every major Busbetzky the eleventh century, an extended 1629, when the whole Estonia became of Tallinn organists and was educated church; for example, Tallinn’s St. Christian mission, which integrated part of the Swedish Crown, its territory in Lübeck, Germany. The most Nicholas Church had a large choir historic Livonia into the western was—besides straddling the fault line prominent 17th-century musician to as far back as the late 16th century. Christian cultural space, began with between Western and Eastern Chris- live and work in Estonia was Printed sheet music of the western Johann the Livonian crusade of the Teutonic tianity—also on the border between (1649–1719), a cantor European repertoire, as well as Valentin Meder Order at the end of the 12th and start Protestant and Catholic Europe. The in Tallinn between 1674 and 1683, music textbooks, became available 4 5 who composed and performed ‘Die contemporaries. German playwright societies. Numerous German choral beständige Argenia,’ one of the earliest August von Kotzebue (1761–1819) societies were set up in towns, German operas, with the students of lived and worked temporarily in followed by the first Estonian cultural Tallinn Gymnasium in 1680. Tallinn, where he founded an amateur societies: the Estonia Society in Tallinn theatre company in 1784. In 1809, the and the Vanemuine Society in Tartu, Estonia was integrated into the Russian theatre became the first professional both founded in 1865. Following Empire in 1721, following its conquest theatre in Estonia; besides drama the example of the song festivals during the calamitous Great Northern pieces, the theatre regularly performed organised by the Baltic German War. The Baltic provinces retained European operas. community in 1857 and 1866, the their special status, which secured the first Estonian song festival was held supremacy of German culture. After A public performance scene, led by by the Vanemuine society in Tartu the war, the Lutheran Church was bourgeois music societies, started in 1869. The regular choral festivals strongly influenced by Halle pietism. to take shape in Tallinn and Tartu (initially held predominantly in Tartu Around 1730, the Moravian Broth- in the early 19th century. Amateur and from 1896 in Tallinn) evolved erhood Congregational Movement orchestras and choirs performed into a landmark event in the Estonian (the Herrnhut Movement) reached classical symphonies and oratorios by National Awakening. Estonia, triggering a wide and Mozart, Haydn, Handel and others. culturally important religious and From 1829 to 1835, the Tartu music The first Estonian composers to educational movement among the scene was focused around a string Gertrud Mara compose choral pieces primarily peas-ants. This encouraged the spread quartet financed by the land marshal, Portrait by C. T. von Neff, 1828 were amateurs (Kunileid, Hermann). of literacy and musical education Baron Liphart, and led by one of the In the late 19th century, a number among the peasants. The Moravian most prominent virtuoso violinists of Estonians (Kappel, Läte, Härma, Brethren introduced multipart singing in Europe, Ferdinand David. Many active music scene—regular perfor- Türnpu) studied the organ at St. and instrumental music to their prayer musicians travelling through Riga to mances started with the establishment Petersburg Conservatoire, where meetings; the spread of choirs and St. Petersburg stopped over in Tartu of a music society in 1841. The head they also received instruction in brass bands outside towns in the 19th to give performances. For example, of the society was virtuoso pianist composition. Aleksander Läte went century would not have been possible Ferenc Liszt and Clara Schumann Theodor Stein, later a professor of on to establish the first Estonian without them. performed in the assembly hall of piano at St. Petersburg Conserva- symphony orchestra in Tartu (1900), the University of Tartu. German toire. Choirs were also established while conducted The music scene in towns livened up Konstantin Türnpu and Estonian choral societies were in villages. In southern Estonian choirs in Tallinn, performing classical in the second half of the 18th century established in Tallinn by organist and parishes, where the influence of the oratorios including Bach’s St Matthew with the emergence of bourgeois composer , Moravian Brethren was stronger, Passion and Mass in B minor. amateur societies that started giving Johann August Hagen who also published the first Estoni- Estonian school choirs performed public performances. New of music The Estonian composers and an-language music textbook in 1841. complex four-part pieces; organ and was introduced to towns by German musicians who were educated at St. , one of the greatest violin instruction was available as travelling theatres, whose repertoire Gertrud Mara Petersburg Conservatoire at the turn singers and music teachers in Europe well. Peasant brass bands were also included Singspiel and operas. Madame of the century laid the foundation who spent the final years of her life widespread. Tilly’s opera troupe from Lübeck for the Estonian professional music in Tallinn, helped to organise perfor- visited Tallinn in 1795, performing a From the 1850s onward, the political scene before the First World War. mances of oratorios. Tallinn had an number of operas by Mozart and his setting favoured bourgeois cultural While Rudolf Tobias (1873–1918), 6 7 1909), still followed the tradition of Republic of Estonia in 1918, new of the Estonian National Symphony German romanticism. It was Mart musical institutions were established. Orchestra, was founded in 1926. The Saar (1882–1963), with his expressive Higher music schools were established first chief conductors of the orchestra piano music