The Mägi Ensemble, which operates in the United States, Washington state, holds concerts in Tallinn and Tartu. The choir’s name is a tribute to the Estonian composer Ester Mägi and its repertoire includes works by Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian and Finnish composers.
The choir began with a group of friends who studied at the University of Washington 12 years ago and began performing and recording Ester Mägi’s works. Currently the collective consists of 16 professional singers who mainly dedicate themselves to Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian choral music.
According to the choir’s founder and director Heather Maclaughlin Garbes, the Mägi Ensemble prefers to perform music by living authors and composers. They even combine the two in their concert programs.
“American culture unites the heritage of many nations. We, however, have fallen in love with Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian music, because it plays such an important role in your cultures. We know the singing revolution, the tradition of singing parties
and it’s significant to us,” explained Associate Director Julie Parsons.
Although there are no Estonian, Latvian or Lithuanian speakers among the singers, the works are sung in the original languages. “The Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian communities in Seattle are very supportive of our activities, they come to listen to us and tell us if some sounds sound a little different or what the correct length of vowels is. I myself have studied Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian at the University of Washington, albeit at a very basic level, so I usually start and then bring in native speakers to put the finishing touches on,” Maclaughlin explained of Garbes’ work process.
The first concert of the Mägi Ensemble will take place tomorrow evening in Tallinn Cathedral, where the Tallinn Kevad Women’s Choir will also perform.
2024-01-08 16:54:00
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