Imants Kalniņš (born 26 May 1941 in Riga, Latvian SSR) is a Latvian composer, musician and politician. Having studied classical and choral music, he has written seven symphonies, several

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

s (including the first

rock opera A rock opera is a collection of rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story. Rock operas are typically released as concept albums and are not scripted for acting, which distinguishes them from operas, although several have been ad ...

in the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

, ,

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is ...

s, cantatas,

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

songs, a lot of

movie A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

and

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

music. However, he is generally best known for his rock songs and is to be considered the first composer of intellectual rock music in Latvia. In 2021, Kalniņš received the Grand Music Award for lifetime achievement. Furthermore, he served as a member of the 5th, 7th, 8th, and 9th sitting of the Saeima, the parliament of Latvia, from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1998 through 2010, representing the For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK party.

Life and career

During the 1960s, Kalniņš led the

Liepāja Liepāja (; liv, Līepõ; see other names) is a state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest-city in the Kurzeme Region and the third-largest city in the country after Riga and Daugavpils. It is an important ice-f ...

rock band 2xBBM, which was extremely loved because of its heartfelt songs and

hippy A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...

-like lifestyle. Kalniņš became the symbol of the spirituality, rebellion and worldview of the generation, and it was emphasized by the fact the band was forced to stop playing because of the pressure from official institutions. However, this didn't stop the music of Kalniņš from being played by the extremely popular band , which almost exclusively plays songs written by Kalniņš. During the 1970s, Kalniņš returned to writing symphonic music. In 1984, he wrote the rock oratorio ''Kā jūra, kā zeme, kā debess'' (''Like the sea, like the earth, like the sky'') together with and Juris Sējāns. The oratorio was the first thing played by the band Pērkons for the general public. With it Kalniņš returned to

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...

once more. He wrote many new songs for Pērkons, and these same songs led him to start his own band, in 1985, however, it never gained the recognition and adoration as Menuets and Pērkons. During the

Singing Revolution The Singing Revolution; lv, dziesmotā revolūcija; lt, dainuojanti revoliucija) was a series of events that led to the restoration of independence of the Baltic nations of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania from the Soviet Union at the end of ...

, Kalniņš took an active part in the

Popular Front of Latvia The Popular Front of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Tautas fronte) was a political organisation in Latvia in the late 1980s and early 1990s which led Latvia to its independence from the Soviet Union. It was similar to the Popular Front of Estonia and th ...

, which played the most important role in ending Latvia's occupation by the

. The festival most associated with Kalniņš is the Imantdienas ('The Days of Imants'), extremely popular during the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

times and therefore banned. The tradition was reintroduced in 1995, and since then has happened every year (with the exception of 1997, when the composer was away on a trip, and 2009 after the 2008 Latvian financial crisis). It has remained at least as popular as before. Lately, Imants Kalniņš has been working together with the well-known Latvian musician , and their collaboration has resulted in some of the most excellent albums containing primarily music by Kalniņš, such as ''Par lietām, kas tā ar' nekad nepāriet'' (''About things that never truly go away'') (1997), ''Es redzēju sapnī'' (''I Saw in a dream'') (1998) and ''I Love You'' (1999; despite the English title, the lyrics are mostly in Latvian in this album). In 2000, music for the 1973 movie "" was re-recorded by the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra as well as many recognized singers. In 1973, Kalniņš composed the song "", which became the official anthem of Liepāja in 1999. Imants Kalniņš has been one of the most loved composers in Latvian music for the past half-century. In April 2015, after his translation of

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , s ...

from Arabic to Latvian, Kalniņš was reported to have converted Islam by some outlets, but Kalniņš himself has later refuted these claims.

Private life

Kalniņš has been married five times. In total, he has 7 children. The third marriage, the longest of the former wedlocks, was with the actress Helga Dancberga who died in 2019. They had three children, Dana Kalniņa-Zaķe who became the lead for the Latvian Association of Professional Health Care Chaplains, actress Rēzija Kalniņa and pastor Krists Kalniņš. Currently, he is married to Agra (since 1999).

Works

Orchestral

Symphony * No. 1 (1964) * No. 2 (1965) * No. 3 (1968) * No. 4 with Soprano (11 poems by Kelly Cherry, 1973) * No. 4 (revised without vocal soloist) * No. 5 (1979) * No. 6 with Choir (

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

, 2001) * No. 7 (2015) Concerto * Concerto for Cello (1963) * Concerto for Orchestra (1966) * Concerto for Oboe (2012) Other * Symphonic Miniature, Santa Cruz (2015)

Vocal

Oratorios: * October Oratorio (1967) * The Poet and the Mermaid * Morning Hours Rock Opera * Hello, Out There (Ei, jūs turl!) (1971) * I Played, I Danced Incidental music for Theater * The Prince and The Pauper * The Three Musketeers * Motorcycle (poetry of Imants Ziedonis) (1967)

Film

* Blow, Wind (Pūt, vējiņi! (1973)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kalnins, Imants 1941 births Living people Musicians from Riga Politicians from Riga Latvian National Independence Movement politicians Latvian Farmers' Union politicians For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK politicians Deputies of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Latvia Deputies of the 5th Saeima Deputies of the 7th Saeima Deputies of the 8th Saeima Deputies of the 9th Saeima Latvian composers Soviet composers Soviet male composers Male classical composers Latvian translators Quran translators 20th-century classical composers 20th-century male musicians 20th-century translators 21st-century classical composers 21st-century male musicians People's Artists of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic Recipients of the Cross of Recognition