Documentary film trilogy about Šķērsiela in Pārdaugava released on DVD

Egils Kaljo | 

The award winning series of Šķērsiela documentary films has been released on DVD. The series, made up of three films – Šķērsiela (1988), Jaunie laiki Šķērsielā (1999), and Kapitālisms Šķērsielā (2013) are directed by Ivars Seleckis, and trace the lives of those who live on the Šķērsiela road in the Pārdaugava region of Riga. The films revisit its subjects approximately every ten years (similarly to British director Michael Apted ‘s Up Series documentary project) and present their stories.

Though the film is meant as a documentary of “ordinary” people on an “ordinary” street, the characters are all memorable and engaging. The films are also a kind of time capsule of Latvia and how major events affected everyday life, and how Latvia in many ways has changed dramatically in the last 25 years, and, how in certain ways, it has not changed at all.

The films, sold separately, are all region 0 PAL DVDs (which should play on most all DVD players), and are in Latvian and have English and Russian subtitles. Irritatingly, however, the film producers subscribe to the notion that everyone who speaks Latvian also speaks Russian, and do not provide Latvian subtitles when someone is speaking Russian. As a bonus, the films include interviews with director Seleckis and scenographer Tālivaldis Margēvičs.

For further information, please visit the European Documentary Film Symposium (EDFS) website.

Egils Kaljo is an American-born Latvian from the New York area . Kaljo began listening to Latvian music as soon as he was able to put a record on a record player, and still has old Bellacord 78 rpm records lying around somewhere.

New five euro collector’s coin “Pieci kaķi” inspired by Latvian folk fable

Egils Kaljo | 

The Bank of Latvia has released the latest silver five euro collector’s coin. Entitled “Pasaku monēta I – Pieci kaķi” (Fairly Tale Coin I – Five Cats), it is inspired by the Latvian folk fable where five cats have difficulty bringing home cut wood, but eventually, only after they all start working together, bring home wood, start a fire, make porridge then go to sleep, well fed and content.

There have been various versions of the tale, including Vilma Delle’s (1892 – 1980), published in 1920, as well as a version by Alberts Kronenbergs (1887 – 1958), published in 1949.

The proof quality coin, with a face value of 5 euro was designed by artist Anita Paegle, modelled by Jānis Strupulis, was minted by UAB Lietuvos monetų kalykla and has a mintage of 10,000.

The coin is the first in a planned series to celebrate the most meaningful and beloved Latvian folk tales.

For further information, please visit the Bank of Latvia website.

Egils Kaljo is an American-born Latvian from the New York area . Kaljo began listening to Latvian music as soon as he was able to put a record on a record player, and still has old Bellacord 78 rpm records lying around somewhere.

BSO with Nelsons at helm releases Stostakovich’s Symphony No. 10

Egils Kaljo | 

Latvian conductor Andris Nelsons, who became the Music Director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 2014 (his contract has been extended until 2022), has released his first recording with the orchestra entitled Shostakovich – Under Stalin’s Shadow – Symphony No. 10 on the Deutsche Grammophon label (DG 479 5059, 2015).

Nelsons, who has also conducted the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, will also be the Gewandhauskapellmeister of the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig in 2017.

The CD contains live recordings of Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich’s Passacaglia (from Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk) and Symphony No. 10 in E minor. The record is subtitled Under Stalin’s Shadow, as Shostakovich (1906 – 1975) was often in conflict with the Soviet dictator. Shostakovich fell out of favor with the dictator after Stalin himself attended a performance of Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and openly expressed his displeasure. Shortly afterwards, the infamous Muddle not Music article denouncing the opera appeared in the Pravda newspaper (which, if not written by Stalin himself, was written with his active input) and the opera was banned and Shostakovich himself became persona non grata in the Soviet regime.

Symphony No. 10 was Shostakovich’s first symphony after the death of Stalin in 1953, and the harsh second movement has been interpreted as the composer’s own impression of Stalin, and the symphony overall has many themes of personal identity.

This release is meant to begin a series of Shostakovich releases by Nelsons and the BSO for Deutsche Grammophon – subsequent releases will feature symphonies No. 5, 8, and 9 (2016), as well as Symphonies No. 6 and 7 (2017).

For further information, please visit Andris Nelsons’ website and the Boston Symphony Orchestra website and the Deutsche Grammophon Andris Nelsons page.

Egils Kaljo is an American-born Latvian from the New York area . Kaljo began listening to Latvian music as soon as he was able to put a record on a record player, and still has old Bellacord 78 rpm records lying around somewhere.