Raxtu Raxti is a new ensemble formed by members of the Latvian popular group Autobuss debesīs and Latvian folk musicians, who perform the songs of Latvian composer Imants Kalniņš and others, but with folklore elements and interpretations.  Though only recently formed, the group has quickly become one of the most popular folk ensembles, and the group released their debut album entitled Es atradu tautasdziesmu in 2015.

The group features the Autobuss debesīs members Marts Kristiāns Kalniņš (vocals, keyboards), Armands Treilihs (bass guitar) and Kārlis Auzāns (guitar and cello), joined by folk singer Kristīne Kārkle (vocals, violin) and Edgars Kārklis (vocals, bagpipes, and accordion). Joining the musicians on the album are Artis Orubs on percussion and Ilze Grunte on 12 string guitar.

The album opens with the dreamy ‘Es atradu tautasdziesmu’, a song with music by Imants Kalniņš and lyrics by Laima Līvena, slowly building in intensity over a simple keyboard melody and subtle cello line. Singer Kristīne Kārkle (who seems to be just about everywhere these days, performing with Folkvakars, Trio Šmite Kārkle Cinkuss, and Valts Pūce, among others), delivers a stirring vocal performance with her distinctive voice.

The song ‘Zanes dziesma’ from the film Pūt, vējiņi! (music by Imants Kalniņš, lyrics by Rainis and folksong elements), a fantasy about a young girl doing laundry by the Daugava River who has her wreath stolen from her head by a green pike, and then her ring also falls in the river. The music by Kalniņš and vocals by Kārkle give the song a mystic quality, as the girl reaches from her ring and thinks about what the future might bring her.

Though almost all the music on the album was composed by Imants Kalniņš, other composers are represented here as well. Composer Juris Vaivods provides the music for Rūdolfs Blaumanis’ folksong-style poem ‘Apkal manu kumeliņu’. Blaumanis’ metaphorical imagery – comparing the arduous task of winning the respect of a girls’ mother to climbing a mountain of ice, makes for a rousing, almost war-like song. In the end, the lad prepares his horse for this tortuous journey, chops up the ice mountain, and wins the approval of the mother. The song also features lead vocals by Edgars Kārklis (who also plays with the drum and bagpipe ensemble Auļi).

One of the many positive aspects of the album is its liveliness – reflected in songs such as ‘Man apnikusi’ (music by Imants Kalniņš, lyrics by Broņislava Martuževa), a song for anyone who experiences frustration with life and seeking more enjoyment out of life. Martuževa, who died in 2012, writes ‘Man apnicis ikvienu soli kā rubli bankā reģistrēt, es gribu līdz ar naktsvijoli uz meža noras noziedēt’ (I’m sick of registering every step like a rouble in the bank, I want to blossom like a butterfly orchid in a forest glade). The music of Kalniņš and vocals by Kārkle memorably capture the defiance and dreaminess of the poet’s words.

Autobuss debesīs have always been closely associated with Imants Kalniņš, which should be little surprise, considering that singer Marts Kristiāns Kalniņš is Kalniņš’ son. The group almost exclusively perform only his songs, and have become popular and successful in doing so. Still, performing the works of only one composer can be limiting, so the fact that there are multiple composers (including the group themselves) on the album provides for more variety. Also, one of the many aspects that makes Raxtu Raxti’s Es atradu tautasdziesmu is that it includes some of Kalniņš lesser known songs, and shies away from his biggest hits.

Es atradu tautasdziesmu, with its folklore elements and imaginative new arrangements, makes for a refreshing and enjoyable listen, shining new light on some older songs and presenting some new songs that feel right at place with the others. Though a new ensemble, Raxtu Raxti’s members, with their decades of performance experience, bring a solid music foundation, as well as a unique melding of popular and folk song elements. With this mix of folk elements with compositions by Imants Kalniņš and other composers, the album stands up well with the many other folk albums released in recent memory.

For more information, please visit the group’s Facebook page.

 

Details

Es atradu tautasdziesmu

Raxtu raxti
Produced by MICREC, 2015

Track listing

1. Es atradu tautasdziesmu
2. Karsta mana jauna dziesma
3. Vedību dziesma
4. Puiša dziesma
5. Rakstu rakstus
6. Modināšanas dziesma
7. Zanes dziesma
8. Klusi, klusi
9. Apkal manu kumeliņu
10. Šorīt saule
11. Man apnikusi
12. Laime, laime

Though it really does go without saying that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote some of the greatest sacred choral music in history – works like the Great C minor Mass, the Coronation Mass, and, above all, the Requiem – as he was such a prolific composer, many of his earlier works often get overshadowed by the later works.

Recognizing this, an all-star team of Latvian musicians came together and recorded the album entitled simply Mozart, which collects some of Mozart’s earlier sacred choral works, and was released in 2014 by the Latvian concert agency Latvijas koncerti. The CD features the world renowned Riga Cathedral Boys’ Choir, along with the orchestra Sinfonietta Rīga, soprano Inga Šļubovska, all conducted by long time Boys’ Choir conductor Mārtiņš Klišāns. The CD was also released to celebrate the 20^th anniversary of the Riga Cathedral Choir School in 2014, as well as the 65^th anniversary of the Boys’ Choir in 2015.

Almost all of the works contained on the record were written while Mozart was still living in Salzburg, the town of his birth, and prior to moving to Vienna. Though still a teenager, the maturity of these works is evident, and shows a talent and a musical language well beyond his years. In his short life, Mozart revolutionized music, ushering in the Classical era of music, adeptly composing in many different styles, and paving the way for the Romantic era, and influencing composers like Beethoven, Schubert and Rossini, among many other composers throughout the centuries.

Though more and more Latvian singers have become famous on the world stage, Latvian National Opera soprano Inga Šļubovska shows that she is innately suited for the works of Mozart on this CD. Though an early work (composed in 1771), the multi part ‘Regina Coeli’ is still an extremely demanding work of the soloist. Šļubovska sings adeptly and with confidence. Though the vocal parts have coloratura fireworks (perhaps slightly unusual for a serious sacred piece), Šļubovska brings the necessary gravity to the work, her resplendent voice filled with reverence and piety.

Due to the sacred nature of these works, the choir voices are particularly significant, as they need to bring forth the angelic nature of the vocals. With their decades of experience, conductor Mārtiņš Klišāns and the Riga Cathedral Boys’ Choir are uniquely positioned to provide memorable interpretations of these works. For example, in the prayer ‘Inter Natos Mulierum’ (composed approximately in 1771, when Mozart was still fifteen years old), the soaring vocals of the boys’ choir give the listener an idea of what a choir of angels should sound like.

Sinfonietta Rīga, a comparatively young chamber orchestra (founded in 2006), has, in its short history, become an internationally well-known group of musicians. Balancing both the classic and modern repertoire, the orchestra has already won the Latvian Great Music Award twice, and has recorded albums for international music labels. Being a chamber orchestra, the musicians provide nuanced and intimate performances of these works by Mozart. This can be seen on the multi part ‘Exultate Jubilate’, composed in 1773, an almost operatic sacred work. Sinfonietta Rīga provides an appropriately celebratory and vivacious performance.

One of the best known works on the record is ‘Laudate Dominum’ (composed in 1780), begins with an achingly beautiful solo performed by Šļubovska, which is then supplemented by the voices of the Boys’ Choir, then brought to a swelling crescendo by Sinfonietta Rīga and conductor Mārtiņš Klišāns. Though a comparatively more reserved work than the others, the beauty and honesty of the piece, especially in the hands of such a talented team of artists, makes this one of the definitive recordings of this classic.

The CD booklet features notes on all the compositions by musicologist Orests Silabriedis and Lauma Malnace, as well as biographies of all the performers, in both Latvian and English.

Though many Latvian musicians focus on modern works, or the best known classical works, the album Mozart is at once both memorable and refreshing, breathing new life into these works that are centuries old. It is a fitting tribute to both the Riga Cathedral Boys’ Choir and the Riga Cathedral Choir School’s rich histories and decades of nurturing some of the greatest Latvian singers and musicians. Conductor Mārtiņš Klišāns ably and successfully brings together the vocals of Inga Šļubovska, the Riga Cathedral Boys’ Choir, and the gracefully nuanced performance of the orchestra Sinfonietta Rīga to shed new light on these early Mozart works, and the performances are both exquisite and inspiring.

For more information, please visit the Riga Cathedral Boys’ Choir website and the Sinfonietta Rīga website.

Details

Mozart

Riga Cathedral Boys’ Choir / Sinfonietta Rīga / Inga Šlubovska / Mārtiņš Klišāns
Produced by Latvijas koncerti, 2014

Track listing

1. Regina Coeli – I. Regina coeli laetare
2. Quia quem meruisti portare
3. Ora pro nobis Deum
4. Alleluia
5. Inter natos mulierum
6. Exultate Jubilate – I. Allegro
7. Recitative
8. Aria
9. Alleluia
10. Sancta Maria, mater Dei
11. Veni Sancte Spiritus
12. Laudate Dominum
13. Misericordias Domini
14. Ave verum corpus

Riga was one of the European Capitals of Culture in 2014, and one of the most ambitious projects during that time was Dzintara ceļš, a collection of new choir works performed by the State Academic Choir Latvija, conducted by Māris Sirmais. The theme of this collection is the Amber Road, a trading route, dating from Roman times, where amber from Latvia (and other places) would make its way all the way south to the Adriatic Sea. This collection follows the Amber Road through modern day Europe, with a composition from each nation along the way (compositions are all by Latvian composers). The twelve compositions on this collection begin with Latvia, then move south through Lithuania, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Montenegro, Italy, Turkey, and finally Greece. The text for each composition is from a poet of that particular nation, and they are all sung in their native languages.

This is not the first choir project with amber at the center of its theme – it follows Amber Songs by the Youth Choir Kamēr… released in 2014, though that collection had international composers arranging Latvian folksongs. These two projects being performed almost consecutively is perhaps a coincidence, or perhaps not at all – Māris Sirmais was the longtime conductor of Kamēr… and left an indelible impression while he was there.

Composer Ēriks Ešenvalds provides the music for the Kārlis Vērdiņš poem ‘Dzintara acis’ (Amber Eyes), a work that is uncharacteristially dark and disturbing for the composer. Vērdiņš’ poem reflects on Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal II (who supposedly had a statue of Baltic amber among his possessions). The poem is full of violent imagery, as the king was well known for his cruelty. The music is equally tormented, with eerie whistling over the ominous male voices, singing about the building of his capital city Kalhu, from where he views the Baltics through his amber eyes.

One of the most encouraging aspects of this collection is that so many works were entrusted to younger composers. Latvija has always been in the forefront of working with new composers and providing a stage for their works to be heard, and these compositions are no exception. One young composer who has begun to make a name for himself in Latvian choir music is Jēkabs Jančevskis, and his contribution is the Polish ‘Odpływ’ (poetry by Tadeusz Dąbrowski). Featuring the soaring soprano solos of Irīna Rebhūna and Sanita Sinkēviča, with the rest of the choir providing ocean sounds, Jančevskis forms an impressive musical tapestry that provides both a mysterious and unearthly aura to the Polish poetry.

Among the many veteran Latvian composers represented here is Juris Vaivods, and his contribution is the music for ‘Ruka’, a poem by Petr Borkovec from the Czech Republic. The supernatural poem paints an image of the narrator’s arm and hand turning to amber when returning to the table of a dying friend. The horror of this is reflected in the music, with ‘Ruka’ reaching a cataclysmic crescendo at that point. However, the work then begins to resemble a canon, where the voices begin at different times to repeatedly sing about needing to see the doctor about the amber arm. The work closes with the soothing words ‘těším se’ (I am looking forward to it).

Composer Juris Ābols considers himself a ‘Dadaist’, and his compositions are almost always quite strange and bizarre. Ābols’ music for Salut au Monde! (based on the poem ‘Providna porodica’ by Montenegrin poet Dragana Tripkovič) is no exception. The work mixes English, French and Serbian texts, and over all of it is a spoken word narration (barked in military style by Uģis Meņģelis) based on writings of Russian astronaut Yuri Gagarin (though, oddly, and for Juris Ābols – appropriately, the narration is in English). The singing and narration give the song an other-worldly feel, like a vision from outer space.

Undertaking such an ambitious project, fraught with potential difficulty (composing music for poetry that is not in the composer’s native language, and potentially in a language the composer does not understand at all, is a particularly daunting challenge). In the hands of anyone else besides conductor Māris Sirmais and the State Academic Choir Latvija it may have resulted in a confusing mess. It is true that this collection features some very modern and difficult choir music, which demands a world class choir like Latvija to be able to perform it (and to sing in twelve different languages). However, the Latvian composers, both young and veterans alike, have risen to this challenge and have produced a collection of choir compositions that are unique and memorable, and, in most cases, true to the spirit of the text. It will remain one of the most memorable musical projects from Riga’s time as European Capital of Culture.

For further information, please visit Latvija’s website.