Many people attending the 2003 Latvian Song Festival in Rīga noted that the Youth Concert was one of the highlights. Many of Latvia’s youth choirs joined together to sing both recent and not-so-recent popular songs arranged for choir voices. However, one glaring omission I noted in the repertoire was the complete absence of any songs by Latvian group Labvēlīgais Tips. How could that be? One of the country’s most popular groups was completely ignored. Miscarriage of justice, I say. Was there truly no room for “Alumīnijas cūka,” “Omnibuss” or “Džins ar toniku” in the concert?

Much to my surprise, during this year’s song festival Labvēlīgais Tips will get a whole performance of its own as part of one of the shows. On July 8, the band (along with other groups, not to mention 2,300 dancers) will play at a dance performance. The group has recorded an album particularly for this event, 2007’s Svīres tango. Remarkably, this is the band’s ninth studio album—and 12th overall—since 1995. No other major group in Latvia has been as prolific.

Topping the band’s 2006 album, Naukšēnu disko, would be difficult. It was an album I thought to be just about the best stuff Labvēlīgais Tips had ever done. Wisely, the group decidedly to vary things slightly in its songwriting and performance, and the resulting album yet again proves why this long-running band is so consistently good at what it does.

The 2007 lineup includes Andris Freidenfelds (vocals), Normunds Jakušonoks (keyboards, vocals), Ģirts Lūsis (guitar), Ainis Zavackis (drums), Pēteris Liepiņš (bass), Artūrs Kutepovs (guitar), Kaspars Tīmanis (trombone) and Oskars Ozoliņš (trumpet, replacing the recently departed Andrejs Ābelīte).

Svīres tango is slightly unusual in that it is a “concept” album. From beginning to end, the album tells a story about a young man who, tired of life in the countryside of Latvia, comes to the big city (Rīga) looking for work and adventure. He runs into a bit of trouble in the capital, meets some questionable characters and, in the end, realizes that—as always—“there’s no place like home.”

The story begins on a train—documented in the Latin-tinged song “Pa sliedēm”—as the young man, yearning for life beyond the countryside, heads to Rīga looking for fortune.  In the march-like “Nevienam es tās Rīgas neatdošu,” he is much impressed by the city, though there is much to be wary of, but still he doesn’t want to trade life in Riga for anything. Of course, he needs to find a job, a theme addressed in “Kurš neko nedara,” which features lead vocals by Jakušonoks. (Jakušonoks, who also sings lead on “Jaunekļa sirds,” joined Tīmanis as part of the sextet Bonaparti.lv, which represented Latvia in the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest with the Italian song “Questa notte.”)

There is also a students’ drinking song, “Mīļumiņ, nāc padzert ūdentiņ,’” and, of course, this water also has malt, hops and yeast along with it. As in most every other big city, there are other temptations to distract the young hero, such as the ladies sung about in “Jaunekļa sirds” and the “Naktstauriņu pilsēta,” sung from the perspective of the ladies themselves.

Pop singer Ance Krauze is featured on the title track, “Svīres tango,” as well as the song “Pavediens,” where she reminds the young man that true happiness awaits him at home.

The only real criticism of the album is that it is very short, just barely over 30 minutes. I know some consumers grumble about having to pay full price for a shorter-than-usual album, but if the quality is good (like Svīres tango) I don’t mind so much. The liner notes could be better, though: no lyrics, no photos, not much of anything really besides the song listing and the group members.

Labvēlīgais Tips is on a roll, releasing yet another album of catchy songs full of subtle (and not so subtle) humor. To dismiss the band as being jokesters would be to miss the bigger picture of what the band is all about. Svīres tango features the band showing a slightly more serious side, but still staying true to its whimsical and satirical roots. I, for one, will be picking up tickets to the show on July 8 as soon as they are available.

Perhaps the best known modern Latvian composer is Pēteris Vasks. His name is often mentioned with other classical luminaries such as Estonia’s Arvo Pärt and Poland’s Henryk Mikołaj Górecki. His compositions have been performed and recorded by well-known ensembles such as the Kronos Quartet and Kremerata Baltica. He also has been awarded the Latvian Great Music Award three times—in 1993, 199, and 2000.

The term “modern classical music” may bring to mind dissonant, noisy, almost unlistenable compositions. Sure, there is plenty of that today, but I think one of the many reasons Vasks is the most famous Latvian composer in the world today is that he transcends all of the stereotypes about modern classical music. Certainly there are works of his that some may call “difficult to listen to,” not to mention “really depressing,” but that might be because so many of his works are deeply emotional and—unsurprisingly, as he is the son of a minister—intensely spiritual.

One field that Vasks particularly excels in is compositions of a sacred nature. An excellent example of this is Pater Noster, the 2007 compact disc of sacred choir music released by the Finnish record company Ondine. The CD contains the Vasks sacred works “Pater Noster,” “Dona Nobis Pacem” and the five-movement “Missa.” All the works are performed by the distinguished Latvian Radio Choir conducted by Sigvards Kļava. The Radio Choir is backed up by the orchestra Sinfonietta Riga.

The Latvian Radio Choir was founded in 1940 and is considered one of the best choirs in Latvia, which quite something, considering how many hundreds of choirs there are in Latvia. The choir has won the Latvian Great Music Award four times (1994, 2000, 2004 and 2005) and has won other awards all over the world. Sinfonietta Riga was founded in 2006, and is directed by the conductor and oboist Normunds Šnē.

The liner notes include the original Latin texts of the works, as well as English translations. Also contained is a revealing interview with Vasks about these works conducted by Ināra Jakubone of the Latvian Music Information Centre. Helpfully, the interview is translated into English, German, French and Finnish.

The work “Pater Noster” is quiet and sincere (it is a prayer, after all), not to mention very mature. It is a work that Vasks has said he believed he could only compose properly after he had matured as a composer. And, of course, there is the fact that during Soviet rule sacred music was frowned upon, so the work was composed in 1991, at the time of the renewal of Latvian independence.

“Dona Nobis Pacem” has only three words in it, so it is a particularly difficult task to compose a work that only repeats these words. Interestingly, with sacred works Vasks moves away from a more modern, experimental sound, to what the liner notes call “as traditional as traditional can be.” Vasks himself says these works contain “simple, honest sounds.” Such is “Dona Nobis Pacem,” a work that is absorbing through its 14 minutes.

“Missa” is a large form work of five movements: “Kyrie Eleison,” “Gloria,” “Sanctus,” “Benedictus” and “Agnus Dei.” This is actually the third version of the mass, as it was originally an a capella work, then revised for organ and choir. The most recent (and, as per Vasks, the final) revision is the one on the CD. It is for choir and orchestra. One can see why there will be no further revisions, as the strings work truly elevate this work, from the playfulness of the “Sanctus” to the piety of the “Benedictus.”

This collection of religious works is yet another testament to the power of the music of Vasks. From the subtle to the dramatic, always full of emotion, and with deep spirituality pervading all of the works, listening to this CD is a moving experience. It is an engrossing spiritual journey, made possible by the world class singing of the Latvian Radio Choir, as well as the clarity and sincerity of Sinfonietta Riga, reinforcing Vasks’ place among the greatest modern composers.

One source of continual amazement about life in Latvia is that most every town has a music school. Any student, should they so desire, can spend time learning about music and playing instruments. Unlike my experience growing up in the United States, when music education in public school was limited to less than an hour per day playing in band, Latvian kids, if they choose to, can spend multiple hours per day in music school. Though this is perhaps not the most practical use of their time, it does ensure that the musicians of Latvia are of a world-class level. It may not be good for the Latvian economy to have a nation of starving musicians, but it sure does make for a nice soundtrack.

Latvia-born violinist Gidon Kremer has long been aware of this. He formed the Kremerata Balica chamber orchestra in 1997, featuring young musicians from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. One of the key musicians in the group has been cellist Marta Sudraba, who has been with the group since its founding. Educated at the Latvian Academy of Music and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, her playing has been one of the cornerstones of Kremerata Baltica. The record label Upe tuviem un tāliem, in its quest to spotlight talented young Latvian musicians, last year released Ex animo, a compact disc of chamber music works featuring Sudraba.

Sudraba is joined by pianist Ventis Zilberts on the CD, as they tackle the classic (Beethoven), the impressionistic (Debussy), Russian (Shostakovich) and Latvian (Vasks).

The Beethoven work is the Seven Variations on “Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen” (from “Die Zauberflöte) for cello and piano. I’ve always thought Beethoven was one of the most difficult composers to perform because so very many musicians have performed his work, making it difficult to stand out. However, Sudraba ably takes on this work. The original song is about love and is meant to be charming and playful, and Sudraba and Zilberts approach it with the necessary lightness to make the variations a joy to listen to.

Dmitri Shostokovich is represented by the “Sonata in D Minor for Cello and Piano.” Shostakovich, a 20th century Russian composer, often ran into trouble with the Soviet government, but is considered one of the greatest composers of that era. The sonata has a broad emotional range. As Sudaraba says in the liner notes, it displays “seriousness and craziness, mourning and sarcasm and light humor.” Deftly navigating the varied emotions, Sudraba brings out all the nuances of the work.

Modern Latvian classical music is represented by its most famous composes, Pēteris Vasks, and his work for solo cello, “Grāmata čellam.” This is another work of a very heavy emotional weight, as Vasks’ music can be very difficult and somber. Range again here is key. The first part of the work is fortissimo, and the second and final part is pianissimo, so the artist must be able to perform both the loud and the quiet, and give each part its own individual life. Especially in the fortissimo, Sudraba gives the work the urgency and tension expected. No less tense is the more melodic and subtle pianissimo, which also features Sudraba singing a simple melody over the sound of the cello.

To close out the CD, a work by the French impressionist composer Claude Debussy, the “Cello Sonata,” is included. Sudraba captures the very French charm of this work from the final years of Debussy’s life.

The packaging is excellent. Liner notes are in both Latvian and English and include short biographies of Sudraba and pianist Zilberts, as well as some discussion of the works contained on the CD. Upe tuviem un tāliem has once again done an excellent job in presenting a distinguished young Latvian artist. The CD highlights a truly gifted cellist, performing works of several different eras and styles, and is yet another document that shows why Latvian musicians are considered some of the best in the world.