The Estonian Song Festival (, or simply ) held since 1869, is one of the largest

choral A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

events in the world, a

Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity The Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity was made by the Director-General of UNESCO starting in 2001 to raise awareness of intangible cultural heritage—such traditions, rituals, dance, and knowledge—and ...

. It is held every five years in July, and starting from 1928 always on the same designated site: the Song Festival Grounds (''Lauluväljak'') in

Kadriorg Kadriorg ( Estonian for ' Catherine's Valley') is a subdistrict in the district of Kesklinn ("Midtown"), Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. It has a population of 4,561 (). The subdistrict name derives from the Catherinethal, a Baroque palace of ...

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

.Estonian Song and Dance Celebrations
Estonian Song and Dance Celebration Foundation The joint choir has comprised more than 30,000 singers performing to an audience of 80,000.

History

The tradition of the song festival was born along with

Estonian national awakening The Estonian Age of Awakening () is a period in history where Estonians came to acknowledge themselves as a nation deserving the right to govern themselves. This period is considered to begin in the 1850s with greater rights being granted to com ...

. The first national song festival was held in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

in the summer of 1869. One of the organisers of the first song festival was

Johann Voldemar Jannsen Johann Voldemar Jannsen ( – ) was an Estonian journalist. He was one of the earliest figures of the Estonian national awakening, which he promoted through his newspaper, the ''Eesti Postimees'', and two Estonian Song Festivals. He wrote the nat ...

. In the first three festivals only men's choirs and brass orchestras participated. 822 singers and 56 brass players participated in the first festival. Starting with the fourth festival, mixed choirs were also participating. Starting with the sixth festival in 1896, the festival tradition moved to Tallinn. The Dance and Gymnastic Festival (part of the first Estonian Games held in 1934) was the predecessor of subsequent Estonian Dance Festivals which are now held, by tradition, at the same time with the Song Festival in Tallinn.Dance Festival – Invented Tradition?
by Marika Plakso. Estonian Institute During all the Song Festivals from 1947 to 1985, the Soviet occupation authorities forced Soviet and communist songs into the repertoire. For example, it was mandatory in all events to perform the state anthems of USSR and

Estonian SSR The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, (abbreviated Estonian SSR, Soviet Estonia, or simply Estonia ) was an administrative subunit ( union republic) of the former Soviet Union (USSR), covering the occupied and annexed territory of Estonia ...

The Internationale "The Internationale" is an international anthem that has been adopted as the anthem of various anarchist, communist, socialist, democratic socialist, and social democratic movements. It has been a standard of the socialist movement since ...

, along with songs mandatorily glorifying the Soviet Communist Party and its leaders

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

and

Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

. Because of the inclusion of children's and boys' choirs the total number of participants rose to 25,000 – 30,000 people. Since 1990, almost every Song Festival has featured famous Estonian songs "''

Mu isamaa on minu arm "Mu isamaa on minu arm" ("My Fatherland is My Love") is an Estonian poem by Lydia Koidula. The poem was first set to music for the first Estonian Song Festival in 1869 by Aleksander Kunileid. "Mu isamaa on minu arm" became a popular patriotic ...

''", "''Ta lendab mesipuu poole''", and the national anthem "''

Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm "" is the national anthem of Estonia, originally adopted in 1920 (readopted 1990). The lyrics were written by Johann Voldemar Jannsen and are contrafactum, set to a melody composed in 1848 by Fredrik Pacius, which is also that of the Finland, Fi ...

''". In 2019, the number of visitors to the song festival reached its maximum. Nearly 60,000 tickets were sold from the pre-sale for the XXVII song festival "Minu arm"("My love") concert, and together with the 35,000 singers and musicians participating, a situation had been reached where the pre-sale of tickets was suspended by the decision of the organizers for the safety and security of people. Laulupeomuuseum

List of Song Festivals

References

External links

Official website
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20071109215808/http://www.einst.ee/culture/I_MMIV/arujarv.html The Estonian song festival: a chameleon strategy by ''Evi Arujärv''br>Estonian Punk Song Festival

''To Breathe As One''
video about the event
QTVR fullscreen panoramas
of the Estonian Song Festival {{Authority control Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity 1869 establishments in the Russian Empire Classical music festivals in Estonia 1869 in music Festivals established in 1869 Music festivals established in the 19th century Summer in Estonia Music in Tallinn Culture in Tartu

History

List of Song Festivals

See also

References

External links