The district of Ropaži, found in the Vidzeme area of Latvia, stretches from the Mazā Jugla River near Rīga to the Gauja River near Inčukalns. The area has been inhabited since as early as 4500 B.C., and the ancestors of the Semigallians lived there starting from the 1^st century A.D. The region has a long and colorful history (the first mention of it in historical documents was in 1205), and throughout the millennia, many songs and stories about the region have been sung and told.

Recognizing the wealth of folklore material to be found in this area, the Latvian folklore group Trejasmens (along with many guests) released an album entitled No Ropažnieku dzīves, a two CD set – one CD is songs, the second contains stories, all from the Ropaži area.

Trejasmens, who have been performing since 2001, are made up of Andrejs Planders, Viesturs Āboltiņš, Pēteris Lukašēvičs, Jānis Siliņš, Juris Bariss, Uģis Urtāns, Līga Slišāne, Baiba Ērgle, and Dārta Apsīte. On the album they are joined by a multitude of musicians and storytellers, including members of the Zaķumuiža folklore group Oglīte, the Ropažu men’s ensemble Karma, members of the folklore groups Vilkači and Skandinieki, among many others. All have joined together to present an exhaustive musical and verbal presentation of the Ropaži district.

The group performs traditional arrangements of these songs, and the songs, usually fairly brief, are punctuated with brief instrumental bursts, making for an energetic tour through the musical history of Ropaži. There is a broad variety of songs, from songs about going to war – “Lai aug puri, lai aug meži”, to midsummer songs like “Ņem, Jānīti, sirmu zirgu, ligo, ligo”, to supernatural topics like werewolves and witches in “Vilkač Janka”, where one learns that Jānītis gave himself away as a werewolf as he always went for the bowl of meat first.

Many of the songs are also quite humorous, such as the song “Vīzdegune”, where the narrator brashly tells a conceited girl that treats him shabbily that he will find one that was raised better. Also, noting that the area also had many inhabitants from the Liv culture, there is the song “KORB”, dedicated to the Vidzeme Liv people.

The second CD of stories also contains a variety of tales, both historical and mythological. Some are amusing, such as ‘Kā desas līkums noderēja revolvera vietā’ – a story of a traveler who, when threatened by robbers, manages to convince the bandits that a sausage is a revolver. The story does not end there, as the robbers stop the traveler a second time, and, thinking that he just has a sausage again, fatally discover that he really has a revolver this time. There are more tales of werewolves, such as ‘Saimniece Vilkate’, and, as a note to the story indicates, the inhabitants truly believed that they existed, as a local minister Godelmans even wrote in 1587 that the werewolves had been living in the area for a long time.

As with many other releases from the Lauska record label, the excellent performances are supplemented by excellent packaging. The two CDs come in a richly illustrated hardback book, with more than 70 pages of history, cultural notes, song lyrics, drawings and pictures. There is a brief, but fascinating history of the Liv people in the area, though they were almost fully assimilated in the mid-19^th century, some families still remained and the Liv language was still spoken even in the 20^th century. However, besides a brief introduction and some song explanations in English, the rest of the text is only in Latvian – which is understandable, given the large volume of information contained in the booklet.

The Ropaži region has a wealth of songs, stories, and folklore, and Trejasmens’ album No Ropažnieku dzīves brings much of this wealth to life through songs and stories. Through vivid performances and storytelling, this two CD set is a comprehensive and thorough presentation of the Ropaži region’s history and culture. Supplemented by some of the most comprehensive liner notes in any recent release, the album is at once entertaining and a valuable historical record.

For further information please visit the Lauska record label website.

2016 saw Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks’ 70th birthday. The German record label Wergo, a subsidiary of Schott Music (the publishers of Vasks’ music) took this opportunity to release a number of CDs of Vasks works, both symphonic and chamber music works. In collaboration with the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra and conductor Atvars Lakstīgala, one of the records released included two of Vasks’ major symphonic works – his Concerto for Flute and Orchestra and Symphony No. 3 for Large Orchestra.

Lakstīgala and the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra are no strangers to Vasks’ music, having actively performed and recorded his works, including his Symphony No. 2 on the Kurland Sounds disc, as well as his works ‘Sala’, ‘Musica Appassionata’, and ‘Credo’ also for a Wergo CD. Vasks himself is from the Kurzeme region of Latvia, and perhaps it is appropriate that an orchestra from this same region performs these works.

Vasks’ Flute Concerto is a demanding work, so it should be no surprise that one of Latvia’s premiere flutists – Dita Krenberga – plays the instrument on this recording. Much of Vasks’ music is ominous and full of foreboding, and the first movement ‘Cantabile 1’ of the work is a prime example. Krenberga’s flute and the orchestra begin quietly, as if unsure of which path to take, as they establish a melodic direction, which then gains in strength. Still, there is much trepidation in the flute, which, over the course of this movement, turns calmer, but still sorrowful.

The second movement ‘Quasi una burlesca’ is a jarring contrast to the first movement, with its sharp horn attacks and percussion at the beginning, signaling a dramatic return in tension, which also appears in the flute melody, which is now flittering and perhaps even fearful. Krenberga is given little respite in this movement, however, she maintains the necessary intensity and activity until the very end. The ‘burlesque’ of the title is presented through what is like a warped mirror, as it is at once frightful and containing dark humor. The middle section is where Krenberga shines, as it is an extended flute solo, and Krenberga’s performance is compelling and haunting, with its dramatic and melodic performance. The Concerto concludes with ‘Cantabile 2’, which is, like the first movement, more peaceful, but still maintains the overall tension of the work until the final notes.

Themes of nature, as well as Latvian identity often appear in Vasks’ works, and Symphony No. 3 is no exception. According to Vasks, while composing this monumental work (at nearly 40 minutes, it is one of his longest symphonic works), he pondered themes like ‘loss and the strength to move forward’ and ‘the endless battle between darkness and light’, and these weighty topics manifest themselves in many ways throughout the work. With six movements, the work takes the listener on an extensive and emotional journey, both somber and hopeful.

The pulsating first movement, with a kind of heartbeat provided by the percussion is then followed by the more anxious second movement, with its crashing snare drums and rising tension in the strings, compounded by further thundering percussion. The stormy fourth movement, with the horns and strings alternating alarming sounds, could be interpreted as a final warning to humanity. The sweeping sixth and final movement provides a small glimmer of hope, and also features one of Vasks’ trademarks – instruments replicating the sounds of birds, as if perhaps to suggest a new day may be dawning.

The Liepāja Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Atvars Lakstīgala, once again show not only their talent and skill, but also their innate understanding and appreciation for Vasks’ music. Dramatic and emotional, as well as mysterious and foreboding, the Orchestra reveals the many complex and dense layers of his works. Along with flutist Dita Krenberga, the musicians provide a definitive performance of Pēteris Vasks’ Concerto for Flute. And, in a towering performance, Lakstīgala inspires a monumental performance of the composer’s Symphony No. 3. This CD is yet another exceptional release of Vasks’ music from the Wergo label, provided by exceptional Latvian musicians.

For further information, please visit the Wergo website and the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra website.

 

Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds continues to gain international renown and fame, particularly with his choir music, which is now regularly performed by choirs worldwide. Audiences globally have been moved by his works, with their memorable melodies, their spiritual depth, and emotional resonance.

Ešenvalds’ works have often been inspired by legends, as well as folk traditions, and, recognizing that, the State Choir Latvija, conducted by Māris Sirmais, decided to record an album’s worth of Ešenvalds’ choir works on these themes. Entitled No neatminamiem laikiem (or From the Dim and Distant Past), the CD was released in 2017. Subtitled ‘Tautasdziesmas un teikas’ (or ‘Folk Songs and Fables’), the collection gathers choir songs inspired by folklore and stories.

Though his main influence is Latvian folk songs and fables, Ešenvalds has found inspiration worldwide through his travels. Perhaps it was during his time as composer in residence at the University of Cambridge’s Trinity College that Ešenvalds further developed his interest in the folklore and songs of the British Isles, as this collection features arrangements of both the Scottish ‘My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose’ (words by Scottish poet Robert Burns) and the Irish ‘O Danny Boy’ (although the lyrics were originally by an English poet, it is one of the most famous of Irish songs). Both songs feature the duet of baritone Daumants Kalniņš and soprano Laura Štoma. Ešenvalds takes a traditional approach to these arrangements, leaving the soloists to sing the melody while the choir harmonizes, thereby leaving these memorable melodies in the foreground. The soloists deliver an enrapturing performance of these songs, particularly the heartbreaking ‘O Danny Boy’, with Kalniņš’ resonant, affecting vocals flowing together with Štoma’s soaring, angelic singing to create a deeply emotional rendering of the song.

Legends and stories of the Northern Lights have always been a major influence and inspiration for Ešenvalds’ works, and the album has a number of works on these themes. One example is the song simply entitled ‘Northern Lights’, which begins with a haunting Latvian folk song sung by Ansis Bētiņš. The folk song is about the coming of war foretold by the Northern Lights, and, as the CD booklet notes, in Latvian folklore the Northern Lights are considered to be spirits of soldiers. The song also uses texts by poets Charles Francis Hall and Fridtjof Nansen, also about the Northern Lights, and Ešenvalds meshes all of these evocative images and the wonder and amazement in the words into a memorable musical portrayal of these mystic images.

Ešenvalds has, of course, found much inspiration in Latvian folklore as well. Two such examples on this collection are ‘Ainava ar ganiem’ and ‘Aizej, lietiņ’. ‘Ainava’ combines elements of Latvian folk songs and folklore, presenting a engrossing musical picture of the Latvian landscape and herders working throughout the day. The song also incorporates elements of traditional Latvian singing, which, when combined with the choir’s harmonies, presents a pastoral panorama. ‘Aizej, lietiņ’’ is inspired by the more mystic aspects of Latvian folklore, and the song is one of conjuring and prayer by a herdsman for the rain to depart. The ensemble Altera veritas, with their unique combination of instruments (kokle, flute and accordion), provides an appropriately atmospheric foundation for this compelling performance, which also features soloist and folk singer Asnate Rancāne (of the ensemble Tautumeitas and other folk projects). The atmospheric middle section, with its soloists joining in sequence to create a rich, musical tapestry, then leads to a thundering, transformative conclusion, musically conjuring the celebration of the appearance of the sun.

The State Choir Latvija and conductor Māris Sirmais have long been collaborators and proponents of Ešenvalds’ music (the composer was a singer in the choir for many years). This is their second CD of Ešenvalds’ choir compositions (the first was 2013’s At the Foot of the Sky), and, as on that CD, the choir and Sirmais prove to be peerless interpreters of the composer’s works and again show that they are one of the most talented and versatile choirs performing today.

Folklore and folk songs have long been a source for inspiration for composer Ēriks Ešenvalds, and the fruits of this labor are on full display on No neatminamiem laikiem. The State Choir Latvija and artistic director Māris Sirmais take the listener on a magical and memorable journey throughout tales and songs of Latvia and other nations, throughout songs both sweeping and nuanced, broad in scope and intimate. The voices of the choir join together to lift these songs and bring them to life, majestically presenting these legends and stories. Ešenvalds’ choir music, in the hands of an exceptionally talented choir like Latvija, is a memorable musical accomplishment.

For further information, please visit Ēriks Ešenvalds’ website and the State Choir Latvija website.