Ester Mägi, known as the First Lady of Estonian music, has written over 80 choral compositions of various voicings. She is inspired by traditional folk song structures but uses them as inspiration rather than taking them in whole. My current research focuses on the collection and translation of these works to allow them to be more accessible to a broader audience.
Although the popularity of Arvo Pärt and Veljo Tormis have brought the awareness of Baltic music to a new level in the past few years, there is an immense amount of quality literature that the music community needs to hear, study and perform. The choral works of Estonian composer Ester Mägi represent a genre of music that combines the tradition of folk music style with the innovation and creativity of contemporary harmonies and voicings. Ms. Mägi has drawn from the traditional Setu and folk melodies, but then has used those formulas as a springboard to compose original melodies. This combination of compositional techniques brings life, newness and vitality to the old traditions which, in turn, allows them to continue through the generations.
I have collected and cataloged the choral works as part of my dissertation for the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Choral Conducting at the University of Washington. The catalog lists the works with detailed explanations of the voicing, text source, translation and form of each piece. I have also taken the manuscripts and transferred them into printed music scores. In addition to the catalog, this document gives an overview of the education and influences in Ester Mägi’s life and how they affect her compositions.
Another aspect of my research during my studies has been to help establish the Baltic Choral Music Library at the University of Washington. In collaboration with Dr. Geoffrey Boers, Dr. Judy Tsou and Michael Biggins, the UW Baltic Choral Library is developing into one of the most comprehensive collections of Baltic choral music in the United States with over seven hundred items. This library was established in hopes of creating greater access for American choral musicians to the wealth of these musical traditions. This access will then allow choral musician the opportunity to discover, study, edit and perform works that until recently were inaccessible, due to governmental restrictions and economic hardship. I have been in contact with the National Libraries in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania since 2005 and we have continued a relationship of exchange of items since the establishment of this relationship. This arrangement has helped the Baltic Library collection continue to grow while helping the National Libraries of the Baltic States rebuild their collections in a time of limited money and resources.
I am planning on continuing my research on Ester Mägi by expanding the catalogue and analysis to include all of her works, which include compositions in every major genre. I am continuing to work with the National Libraries in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to procure more items for the UW Baltic Choral Library. I am also in the process designing a more interactive and comprehensive web catalog to allow the user to access background information on the composer, history and background of composition, past performances, recordings, translations and pronunciation assistance. To add to the collection, I would like to have choral ensembles record compositions that have either never been recorded or have had recordings destroyed during the time of the Soviet-controlled government.I believe that continued research in the area of the Baltic music will give us an insight on ways music can connect and influence our daily lives and the community around us.
