Veljo Tormis

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Veljo Tormis (2004)

Veljo Tormis (born August 7, 1930 in Kuusalu , † January 21, 2017 in Tallinn ) was an Estonian composer . He is considered one of the most important Estonian composers of the 20th century. He is internationally known for his extensive work of over 500 choral compositions, most of them a cappella . The majority of his compositions are based on traditional Estonian folk songs.

Life

Veljo Tormis was born the son of a Protestant sexton and choir director. Early on he felt an inclination and aptitude for music. From 1942 to 1944 he learned the organ at the Tallinn Conservatory with August Topman . After the occupation of Estonia by the Soviet Union in autumn 1944, the organ class at the Conservatory was closed because organ music was considered Christian and ecclesiastical music.

In 1950/51 he studied composition at the Tallinn State Conservatory with Villem Kapp . He graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1956 in the composition class of Vissarion Schebalin .

From 1955 to 1960 Tormis was a lecturer at the Tallinn Music School. From 1956 to 1969 he worked as a consultant at the Composers' Association of the Estonian SSR ( Estonian ENSV Heliloojate Liit ) in Tallinn . From 1969 he worked as a freelance composer. He collected the songs and magic spells of the small Baltic Finnish peoples, the Ischoren , Liven , Wepsen and Woten . They went into his more than 60 major choral works. His most important choral work is programmatically entitled Forgotten Peoples . Tormis thus became a “voice of resistance against a Soviet policy of destroying memory”.

From 1974 to 1989 Tormis held the post of first deputy chairman of the Estonian Composers Union.

Awards

In 1974 Tormis received the State Prize of the USSR after he had already been awarded the State Prize of the Estonian SSR in 1970 and 1972. In 1980 and 1986 he was awarded the Estonian SSR's Annual Music Prize. In 1987 Tormis received the title of "People's Artist of the USSR". In 1989 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Estonian Academy of Music. This was followed in 1995 by the Culture Prize of the Republic of Estonia and in 1998 by the Foundation for Estonian Folk Culture (Eesti rahvuskultuuri fond) for his life's work . In 2009 he received the Composition Prize of the Estonian Music Council and in 2010 the Order of the State Coat of Arms, 1st class, and in 2015 the Kreutzwald Memorial Medal .

Private life

Veljo Tormis was married to the theater scholar Lea Tormis (* 1932), the daughter of the Estonian writer Paul Rummo (1909–1981). Her son is the photographer Tõnu Tormis (* 1954).

Works (selection)

  • Kihnu pulmalaulud (wedding songs of Kihnu ), 1959
  • Sügismaastikud (autumn landscapes), 1964
  • Eesti kalendrilaulud (Estonian Calendar Songs), 1966–67
  • Maarjamaa ballaad (Ballad of the Land of Mary), 1967
  • Raua needmine (Curse on the Iron), 1972
  • Pikse litaania (Litany to Thunder), 1974
  • Unustatud rahvad (Forgotten People), 1970–89
  • Eesti ballaadid (Estonian Ballads), 1980
  • Laulusild (Bridge of Song), 1981
  • Varjele, Jumalan soasta (God save us from war), 1984
  • Piispa ja pakana (The Bishop and the Pagan), 1992

literature

  • Mimi S. Daitz: Ancient Song Recovered: The Life and Music of Veljo Tormis . Pendragon Press, Hillsdale, New York 2004, ISBN 1-57647-009-1 (English).

Web links

Commons : Veljo Tormis  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Laur Viirand, Reet willow tree: Suri helilooja Veljo Tormis. In: Estonian Radio . January 22, 2017, Retrieved May 5, 2017 (Estonian).
  2. ↑ a b c Jan Brachmann: Choirs of forgotten peoples. On the death of the Estonian composer Veljo Tormis . In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung of January 24, 2017, p. 12.
  3. ↑ Eesti elulood. Eesti Entsüklopeediakirjastus, Tallinn, 2000 (= Eesti entsüklopeedia 14). ISBN 9985-70-064-3 , p. 546.
personal data
SURNAME Tormis, Veljo
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Estonian composer
DATE OF BIRTH August 7, 1930
PLACE OF BIRTH Kuusalu
DATE OF DEATH January 21, 2017
Place of death Tallinn