The mixed choir Sõla, of the Latvian Academy of Culture, performed for United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, American ambassador Judith Garber, and other guests at the United States Embassy in Rīga, Latvia on Thursday, June 28. The choir performed the song “Līgo!”, a folk song arrangement by Ārijs Škepasts.

The event was to celebrate the renaming of the street on which the embassy is located, from “Remtes iela” to “Samnera Velsa iela”, in honor of Sumner Welles, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Secretary of State, who refused to acknowledge the occupation of Latvia by the Soviet Union in 1940.

Sõla is traveling to Cincinnati, Ohio to participate in the World Choir Games. It is the only choir representing Latvia at this event, though Latvia will also be represented by the ensemble Latvian Voices. The choir will be competing in three categories – sacred music, folk music, and mixed choir repertoire. Sõla, along with mayor Nīls Ušakovs, will also be representing Rīga, as the 2014 World Choir Games will take place in the Latvian capital.

This event can be viewed on the Saeima’s You Tube link.

A new book featuring Jāņi traditions titled 3×9 Jāņi has just been published in Rīga. The unique feature in this publication is the option of scanning the QR codes of Jāņi songs in the book with your smartphone to hear the melodies. Now you can access those harder-to-remember melodies anywhere – by the Jāņi bonfire, out in the meadow, in the sauna – wherever your heart desires.

If you’re celebrating somewhere with an internet connection the other choice is to find them on the book’s You Tube link.  It seems there would now be no excuse for not knowing the melodies of those hundreds of songs with the refrain “līgo”.

The author, Ērika Māldere, who is a member of the folklore group Savieši (and formerly a member of the renowned group Skandenieki) has involved the traditional Latvian group in recording the songs. The graphics in the book are those of the author herself, a professional graphic designer. 3×9 Jāņi is full of tips on how to mark this ancient summer solstice celebration the traditional way – from the preparation side to the rituals that are a part of the celebrations on this night, the rotaļas (dancing games) and songs that are an integral part of this symbolic worshipping of the sun.

The German music label Wergo, a long-time supporter and proponent of Latvian classical music and performers, particularly the works of Pēteris Vasks, has released Vox Amoris, a collection of Vasks’ works for violin and string orchestra.

Featuring violinist Alina Pogostkina performing with Sinfonietta Rīga and conductor Juha Kangas, the collection contains three works – ‘Vox Amoris’, described as a fantasia per violin ed archi, as well as ‘Tālā gaisma’ – a concerto for violin and string orchestra, and finally ‘Vientuļais eņģelis’, a meditation for violin and string orchestra.

The performances were recorded in 2011 and were produced by Normunds Šnē and the Latvian concert agency Latvijas Koncerti. The CD booklet features a lengthy essay on the music of Pēteris Vasks by Christiane Krautscheid, as well biographies of Pogostkina, Sinfonieta Rīga and Kangas.

Other Vasks CDs released by Wergo include Viatore (also featuring Sinfonietta Rīga), Cantus ad pacem (organ works performed by Tālivaldis Deksnis), and Gadalaiki (piano works performed by Vestard Shimkus). The Finnish record label Ondine also released a CD in 2003 with ‘Tālā gaisma’ – featuring John Storgårds on violin.

CD tracklisting:

1. Vox Amoris – fantasia per violin ed archi
2. Tālā gaisma – Distant Light – Concerto for violin and string orchestra
3. Vientuļais eņģelis – Lonely Angel – meditation for violin and string orchestra

More information on this compact disc can be sourced from the Wergo record label – www.wergo.de, Latvijas koncerti – www.latvijaskoncerti.lv or The Pēteris Vasks Fund – vaskafonds.lv