Valter Ojakäär

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Valter Ojakäär (born March 10, 1923 in Pärnu ; † October 26, 2016 ) was an Estonian composer, music journalist and musician (clarinet, saxophone), who mainly worked during the period when Estonia was part of the Soviet Union.

life and work

Valter Ojakäär studied composition from 1951 to 1956 at the Tallinn State Conservatory (now the Estonian Music and Theater Academy ) with Mart Saar and Heino Eller . From 1945 to 1970 he worked as concert master of the saxophone group of Estonian television and radio . From 1964 to 1967 and from 1975 to 1980 Ojakäär was a teacher at the Tallinn Conservatory , where he also taught the history of jazz . As a clarinetist, he played in numerous Estonian music groups and orchestras, for which he also arranged. A wider audience, he was as a presenter of popular programs on the history of jazz and popular music known.

Many of the songs and pieces of music he composed became popular hits . In addition to jazz, Ojakäär wrote numerous stage and film scores. In 1967 he published the opera Kuningal on külm based on a libretto by Ain Kaalep , in 1977 the musical Suveöö ilmsi , in 1988 the operetta Maskeraad Ungrus based on a libretto by Ardi Liives and in 1990 the musical Winnetou . He has also published numerous books: in 1966 he wrote the standard work Džässmuusika , one of the first books on the history of jazz to be published in the USSR. In 1978 his book Popmuusikast about western pop music followed.

Ojakäär received the Estonian SSR Music Prize in 1982 and 1984 . In 1989 he was awarded the title of People's Artist of the Estonian SSR . He was an honorary citizen of his hometown Pärnu.

In 2013 he received the Jazz Promoter Award at the Jazzkaar jazz festival in Tallinn.

Private life

Valter Ojakäär was married to the pianist and university professor Heljo Sepp (1922–2015). Her son was the Estonian radio journalist Jaak Ojakäär (1958-2016).

Fonts

  • Džässmuusika 1966
  • Popmuusikast 1978
  • Vaibunud viiside kaja 1999 ISBN 9985-70-048-1
  • Sirp ja saksofon , Tallinn: Ilo, 2008 (sickle and saxophone, Estonian)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Wolfram Knauer European Jazz 1993. Hofheim 1993, p. 251
  2. ↑ Eesti elulood. Tallinn: Eesti Entsüklopeediakirjastus 2000 (= Eesti entsüklopeedia 14) ISBN 9985-70-064-3 , pp. 337f.
  3. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from March 13, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.parnupostimees.ee
  4. ↑ Prices of Jazzkaar ( Memento of the original from June 3, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.jazzkaar.ee
  5. ↑ http://kultuur.err.ee/v/varia/7e718d8b-f352-4f63-b897-a6c5beed0952/suri-jaak-ojakaar
personal data
SURNAME Ojakäär, Valter
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ojakäär, Walter
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Estonian composer
DATE OF BIRTH March 10, 1923
PLACE OF BIRTH Parnu
DATE OF DEATH October 26, 2016