Veljo Tormis

Veljo Tormis was a contemporary Estonian composer known for his choral settings of traditional Estonian folksongs. Some of his works utilize forgotten and extinct languages of the ancient Livonian and Ingrian cultures. He was born in 1930 in the small Estonian town of Kuusala, and both of his parents were musicians. His father was an organist and choral conductor, and his mother sang in the choir. Their home was frequently used as a rehearsal space for the choir during Tormis’ childhood, which made a lasting impression. His first musical instruction came from his father, and he began studying the organ at the Tallinn Conservatory in 1943. However, after a short time at the conservatory, he stepped away from his education to serve in WWII, followed by a period of poor health. After his recovery, he returned to The Tallinn Conservatory in 1949, but the courses were ended prematurely by Soviet authorities. Tormis then became a composition student of Villem Kapp, and in 1950 his Ringmängulaul earned him his first composition award. In 1951, Tormis continued his education at the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied with Vissarion Shebalin and Yury Fortunatov, and he married historian Lea Rummo. After his graduation in 1956, he began teaching at the Tallinn Music School and he joined the Estonian Union of Composers. He left the Tallinn Music School in 1960, and two years later he joined the teaching faculty at the Tallinn Music High School. He stopped teaching in 1966 to devote more time to composing, as his reputation continued to grow. He composed Estonian Calendar Songs in 1967, and in 1969 the Estonian Ministry of Culture began purchasing his manuscripts, which became a significant source of income. Tormis composed Raua Needmine in 1972, which became his most performed work outside Estonia. Around this time, it was common for the Soviet government to ban new compositions, but Tormis’ music was largely accepted because of his strong folk music influence. Through the 1970s and 1980s, he remained highly respected and successful, despite the so-called “Era of Stagnation” that occurred then. Tormis’ banned compositions became available after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, and other composers also benefitted from this change. In the '90s, Tormis remained very active as a composer, and some of his more well-known pieces from this time include The Bishop and the Pagan, The Estonians’ Political Parties Games, and Incantatio maris aestuosi. By the time of his retirement from composing in 2000, his worklist contained over 500 vocal, choral, and instrumental pieces, 35 film scores and an opera. Although he stopped composing new material, he continued revising and editing previously composed music. Tormis passed away in Tallinn in 2017 at the age of 86, after battling a long-term illness. His music has been featured by Owain Park and the Gesualdo Six on the album Fading, The Calmus Ensemble’s Landmarks, and the 2023 release, Veljo Tormis: Reminiscentiae with Tõnu Kaljuste conducting the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and Tallinn Chamber Orchestra.
© RJ Lambert /TiVo