But it’s not only the fire which is ready for the festival and which has started the journey there. Many others have also started, as much as several years ago, to know and master the song repertoire and to be in tune. But also to start the journey of movement, because those who come from far away must be there earlier, like Imelik says in Oskar Luts’ Kevad.
In today’s issue, we are talking about Läänetuul, the Estonian choir from Vancouver, on Canada's west coast, who will be undertaking the long journey to Estonia's General Song Festival for the fourth time. The momentum was initiated by the fundraising party held on the last day of May, where a spirited program was provided by Läänetuul and the Kilplased folk dance group, which is, in turn, participating in the dance festival. You can read about the party itself in Liisi Einmann’s article “MeieOma pidu.”
Eesti Elu was kindly given comments about Läänetuul’s activities by choir conductor Thomas Kirves, who began by saying that it was wonderful to once again be part of the great sense of togetherness that the song festival brings.
Terri Johanson called together singing enthusiasts who wanted to go to the Song Festival for the first time. A total of twenty members were gathered, the main members of which were members of the St. Peter’s congregation in Vancouver and some other choral singing enthusiasts who had their first experience of the Song Festival in 2009.
Before the next song festival, in 2013, Thomas Kirves was asked to organize the singing enthusiasts and start rehearsals. The trial for the Song Festival was passed, and in 2014 the choir was using the name “Läänetuul,” which has remained to this day. In 2019, twenty-two singers travelled to Tallinn. This year eighteen will go, and still under the leadership of Thomas Kirves.
Thomas Kirves told Eesti Elu that, like many other activities, COVID-19 largely stopped Läänetuul’s regular choir rehearsals. They performed at Christmas and on the anniversaries of the Republic of Estonia, but there was no regularity in activities otherwise.
However, the upcoming 2025 Song Festival forced them to be more active again. Three-quarters of the choir members going to Estonia this year have previous Song Festival experience. The fact that singing together under the shell of the Song Festival Grounds gives one a much-needed adrenaline rush that helps keep the spark of Estonianness alive in Vancouver and carries it forward upon returning home makes one work harder to get to the party.
As for this year’s repertoire, from the choir director’s point of view, the most demanding pieces were “Meelespea” (Veljo Tormis) and “Allikas” (Ardo Ran Varres, lyrics by Hasso Krull), both of which were also selected to be performed for the jury. Linguistically, the folk chorale from Otepää, “Oh Aadam, sino essitüs” (Margo Kõlar), presented a serious challenge, with its dialect-based text and sounds requiring considerable effort. The audio files distributed by the Song Festival committee were a great help, making it much easier for the choir members to learn the song independently.
The first two songs, although complex and requiring hard work to learn, also became favourites—the choir enjoyed “Allikas” the most, and the choir director was most impressed by “Meelespea,” which will be performed in memory of the composer Gustav Ernesaks.
“Läänetuul” has been practicing very regularly for the past year and a half at Meie Kodu in Vancouver for two hours every Thursday. The choir director had nothing but praise for the singers—it was not always easy to get to practice. Some came in from nearly a hundred kilometers away and often in poor weather conditions.
Now the daily efforts are behind us. Of course, there are still joint song rehearsals in Estonia ahead and then… “Koit”… Laulud nüüd lähevad kaunimal kõlal… The songs will then sound out beautifully, coming from 30,000 mouths all at once. The Song Festival flame will be lit. These are unforgettable experiences that once experienced, you cannot forget, which you look forward to repeating again and again.
The song festival cannot be described in words. It is a special, great feeling in your soul. A love of the homeland, pride, sadness over Estonia’s past, concern and sympathy for Estonia’s future, and pure joy at the opportunity to make music together with all these people. It’s a real, deep feeling. And that’s what the Läänetuule singers are expecting from this year’s song festival.
See you at the song festival!
Läänetuul would like to express its heartfelt gratitude to the Estonian Foundation of Canada, the Estonian Church Foundation, and St. Peter’s Estonian Lutheran Church in Vancouver for their generous financial support. Many thanks are also due to the more than one hundred kind donors who came to participate in the “MeieOma” benefit concert on May 31st. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
