Mart Saar (1882–1962) was among the first professional Estonian composers. Like many of his contemporaries, he received his musical education at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, where he studied in Louis Homilius’s organ class from 1901 to 1908, graduating with a silver medal. Afterward, he settled in Tartu but continued to travel to the capital of the Tsarist Empire until 1911 to further his studies in composition. The young composer was particularly influenced by the composer and pedagogue Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, who, as an enthusiast of folklore himself, taught his students not only to appreciate folk melodies but also to recognize their unique character, encouraging the use of techniques that differed from classical harmony. And although Saar had initially shown himself to be a modernist composer at the beginning of his creative path—in his first solo songs and piano pieces, as well as some choral works—a change soon followed. Born and raised in the heart of nature at the Hüpassaare forester’s farm, the author eventually set aside his explorations of modern style and became one of the founders of the Estonian national musical idiom. It is precisely this turning point that is reflected in the 1910 song “Laulu eestvõtja” (The Song Leader).

The opening song of the concert, “Looduse tervitus päikesele” (Nature’s Greeting to the Sun), is taken from Mart Saar’s music for the fairy-tale play “Kadunud printsess” (The Lost Princess, 1924) with text by Julius Oro. Julius Oro (Oengo, 1901–1941) was a well-known children’s author and the lyricist of popular songs, such as the toddler book “Muna” (The Egg) or the song “Tiliseb, tiliseb, aisakell” (Jingle, Jingle, Sleigh Bell). “Kadunud printsess” premiered as a concert performance in 1925 at the Estonia Concert Hall. This incidental music is also the source of, for example, the famous “Lindude laul” (Song of the Birds). Following a successful performance, Hanno Kompus, the opera director of the Estonia Theatre at the time, proposed that Saar orchestrate the material. For some reason, however, the project never came to fruition, and thus the material in question faded into obscurity. The Ellerhein Girls’ Choir is known to have performed it only once during the intervening years, in 1977, until at the initiative of Ingrid Kõrvits and in connection with Mart Saar’s 140th anniversary, “Kadunud printsess” was performed by all Ellerhein choirs in 2024 at the same Estonia Concert Hall; simultaneously, the sheet music and a recording were completed.

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Veljo Tormis (1930–2017) was Estonia’s most powerful choral composer in the second half of the 20th century, and an author highly esteemed throughout the wider world. “Suvemotiivid” (Summer Motifs, 1969, lyrics by Aleksander Suuman) belongs to the cycle “Looduspildid” (Nature Pictures), along with “Kevadkillud” (Spring Fragments, 1966), “Sügismaastikud” (Autumn Landscapes, 1964), and “Talvemustrid” (Winter Patterns, 1968). For a sound artist who was born (Kuusalu) and raised (Vigala) in the lap of beautiful nature, and who was inspired by folk songs and folklore, his close connection to the living natural world is clearly palpable. In all these cycles, the author has sensitively followed the text, striving to find expressive sonic counterparts to the words. As a successor to the ideas of Mart Saar, Tormis primarily became a user of the ancient regivärss (runic) folk melody as a creative source.

“Kurb laulik” (The Sorrowful Singer, Kuusalu melody, traditional lyrics) belongs to the cycle “Laulud laulust ja laulikust” (Songs about Song and the Singer, 1971) and is dedicated to Jaan Kaplinski (1941–2021). Veljo Tormis: “The songs [of this cycle] are dedicated to people who had influenced me in the fields of folkloristics and folk song at that time or were somehow kindred spirits.” Tormis had encounters with Jaan Kaplinski on several occasions. For instance, Tormis wrote the solo song cycle “Kümme haikut” (Ten Haikus, 1966), “Kevadkillud” (Spring Fragments, 1966) for female choir, or the powerful “Maarjamaa ballaad” (Ballad of Mary’s Land) based on his texts; the latter was completed for the 25th anniversary of the Estonian National Male Choir (RAM) and won first prize in the male choral song competition held for the occasion. Furthermore, Kaplinski compiled the texts for works such as “Naistelaulud” (Women’s Songs, 1977), which were based on folklore. Tormis noted: “[Hando] Runnel used folk song in his poetry much more than Kaplinski, but theoretically, it was Kaplinski who discussed the subject more. For example […] in 1997, Kaplinski published the book ‘Võimaluste võimalikkus’ (The Possibility of Possibilities), which contains several articles on folk song and mainly on the themes of regilaul. There is an article here called ‘Rahvalaulu juurde jõudmine’ (Arriving at the Folk Song) […], written in 1970–72. That was the time when we did some folk song arrangements with him. But the process of reaching that point must have happened before that; here he has only provided a summary.” (From the book “Veljo Tormis. Jonni pärast heliloojaks”).

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