Laptops with traditional patterns

In the eve of the song and dance festival telecommunication company Elisa introduced to the market laptops with national prints in order to give the mobile computer fans the possibility to take the national patterns into modern use on the cover of their laptops, informs Elisa.

According to Reet Piir, researcher of the Estonian National Museum, there are never too many beautiful and good things, especially if they are based on tradition. “The cover design of the Elisa laptops use symbols which are recognizable for every Estonian – striped skirt and the octagonal lucky star of the belt patterns.”

According to the words of the member of the board of Elisa Andrus Hiiepuu, the folk costume patterns which are known from the books of folk costumes have been actively taken into use in several forms during the song and dance festival year and have thereby been revived. “While by now, the historical folk patterns are decorating socks and sneakers, then Elisa offers the mobile computer fans the possibility to acquire a laptop with national patterns,” he said. You can choose the stylised belt pattern of the Kanepi parish, stripes of the Kihnu skirt or the stripes of the skirt from Urvaste parish as the cover of Lenovo IdeapadS10 laptop.  The pattern is placed on the cover of the laptop with a film that can easily be removed if necessary.

Laptop with traditional pattern. Photo: Elisa.

Laptop with national pattern. Photo: Elisa.

The fire of “To Breathe As One” was born in Pärnu

At sunset of Saturday, 27 June the fire of this summer’s song and dance festival “To Breathe As One” started its 320-sea mile long voyage towards Tallinn on yacht Ruhnu Karu and should reach there by the eve of the festival on 2 July.

The newly lit song and dance celebration “To Breathe As One” fire by the downtown bridge of Pärnu. Photo: Olev Mihkelmaa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The dance festival fire brought from Kihnu to Pärnu on fishing boats yesterday and the song festival fire brought from Tartu to Pärnu by historical inland waterways joined on the Pärnu river through the one-hour ceremony. Thereafter the fire was brought to the land where a human chain of nearly 400 folk dancers brought it hand-to-hand to the Yacht Club of Pärnu where it was welcomed by the mayor of Pärnu, County Governor of Pärnu and representative of the Estonian Folk Dance and Folk Music Society.

At sunset at 22.30 the fire started its journey on yacht Ruhnu Karu together with the Estonian Male Choirs Association towards Kuressaare where they will arrive on Sunday evening around 20.00. “The fire of the song and dance festival will stop each night in a port where a concert is organised by a society or association. At sunset the festival fire will start its journey again onboard Ruhnu Karu,” said the project manager of the fire journey or Fire Coming of the party Mart Tõnismäe.

• On Sunday, 28 June at 20.00 the fire will land in Kuressaare at Raiekivi säär and a concert of the Estonian Male Choirs Association will be held in the yard of the Kuressaare fortress.
• On Monday, 29 June at 20.00 the fire will land at the Veskiviik port of Haapsalu where a concert of the Estonian Brass Band Music Association will be held.
• On Tuesday, 30 June at 20.00 the fire will land at Kärdla port and a concert of the Estonian Female Choir Association will be held at the beach by the Rannapaargu restaurant.
• On Wednesday, 1 July at 20.00 the fire will land at the Lohusalu port where the concert of Estonian Mixed Choirs association will be held.
• On Thursday, 2 July at 22.40 the fire will land at the Admiraliteedi bassein of Tallinn by which a concert will be held by the initiative of the Estonian Choral Association and Estonian Folk Dance and Folk Music Association.

Singing in a choir is the most popular hobby art in Estonia

Statistics Estonia informs that in 2008 there were 73,000 persons in Estonia who in their free time were involved in a folk culture activity. The most popular cultural hobby was singing in a choir, says Statistics Estonia.

Last year there were 41,000 persons who practiced singing and of them 39,000 were involved in choir music. According to the number of participants, they were followed by folk dancers, with 18,000 persons practicing. In addition to that, there were over 4,000 people involved in instrumental music, among who 2,700 are playing in a brass band.

Estonia had nearly 1,400 amateur choirs and 300 other ensembles, nearly 1,200 folk dance groups, 200 folk music ensembles and more than 130 brass bands. In addition to that, nearly 350 amateur theatres or theatre troupes, 230 handicrafts groups, 125 folk groups and other hobby groups and circles. Nearly half of the participants are children. In total 71% of the people practicing folk culture activities are women. The percentage of men is higher only among the players of brass instruments. According to the Folk Culture Development and Training Centre there are 372 culture houses, town cultural centres and hobby centres in Estonia.

During the last decade the number of amateur collectives has decreased by nearly half and the number of people involved in the activities by 40%. The number of singers is down by a fifth and people playing an instrument by nearly 40%. At the same time, the number of choir singers has remained on the same level and the number of players of brass instruments has even increased by a fifth.

Dance festival fire was lit in Kihnu

At 21.47 in the eve of St. John’s Day Ülo Luht, the artistic director of the 18th dance festival “Meri” (The Sea) and Veera Leas, Director of the Kihnu Community Centre lit the dance festival fire from the St. John’s Day bonfire. Thereafter the fire was given in the storm lantern into the care of the people of Kihnu for three days who placed the lantern on a raft and sent it to a pond near the Community Centre to wait its further journey. In the morning of 27 June the people of Kihnu will start in fishing boats towards Pärnu where the dance festival fire will join the song festival fire that was brought from Tartu by inland waters on historical vessels.

Director of the Kihnu Community Centre Veera Leas and artistic director of the dance festival Ülo Luht place the dance festival fire in the storm lantern. Photo: Olev Mihkelmaa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Artistic director of the dance festival Ülo Luht with the dance festival fire. Photo: Olev Mihkelmaa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More photos on our Flickr photo gallery

The Bank of Estonia presents souvenir coins dedicated to the celebrations

The Bank of Estonia informs that on 12 June they will present a golden souvenir coin with the nominal value of 100 EEK and a silver souvenir coin with the nominal value of 10 EEK dedicated to the tradition of the song and dance celebrations.

The backside of the golden souvenir coin depicts the song festival stage used since the 1960s the arc of which has become the symbol of the song festivals. Furthermore, the back side of the coin has its nominal value “100 KROONI”. The front side of the coin features the big coat of arms of the Republic of Estonia, the text “EESTI VABARIIK” (Republic of Estonia) and the year 2009. The golden souvenir coin was designed by Merle Kasonen and Triinu Silla. There are 5, 000 coins and the cost of the golden coin is 3, 500 EEK.

The back side of the silver souvenir coin features a circle of men dancing, which can also be viewed as the wheel of time which symbolises the long tradition of song and dance festivals. The back side also has its nominal value “10 KROONI”. The front side of the souvenir coin has the big coat of arms of the Republic of Estonia, the text “EESTI VABARIIK” (REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA) and the year 2009. The silver souvenir coin was designed by Tiiu Pirsko and Mati Veermets. There are 10, 000 coins and the cost of the silver coin is 350 EEK.

More pictures of coins on the Bank of Estonia homepage.

Estonian Song and Dance Celebration TV-ad

More videos from “To Breathe as One” celebration will be soon (starting 03.07.09) available on our YouTube channel. Feel free to watch them or download to your handheld device.