We here in Adelaide have had a gentle break over the long Southern Hemisphere winter months. The former AES president and his family disappeared to Eesti and the current President also travelled to Paris and Estonia. Other member of the community have either quietly endured the long wet winter months or made short escapes to warmer pastures. Well it is difficult to keep Estonians here in Adelaide at bay for too long, Thomas Sarapuu and his team have put their heads together and created an event that I’m sure will eventually come close to matching Estovision in popularity!
The Nobility from Germany have possibly played some role in Estonian development since their involvement in our country from the early 13th century. The Estonian landscape is still filled with over 1200 manor houses, mostly German, most of which were built in the distinctive classical style with long columns and sharp roofs. Our history has had many influences, and we have grown to appreciate the best of what we have and lead the world in many areas. The next Adelaide Estonian Pub Night is the “OktooberEST Night”, we here in Adelaide have taken the “F” out of the October Fest, sent it elsewhere and hope to make it into an Australian Estonian annual event!! I’m sure the rest of Australia will catch on with this theme… It is going to happen on Friday the 21st of October at Kalev on Jeffcott here in North Adelaide.
This night is going to be one of the best yet, we have already signed the ‘Latvian Village Band’ to provide some an amazing “Umpa” style of music. They are a very experienced band established over 40 years ago and have entertained the Baltic Community here in Adelaide on numerous previous occasions.
We are also pleased to announce that our internationally acclaimed Chef Greggory is back. On this occasion he has perfected an Estonian dish that is true to the Bavarian tradition of this type of event. Tom Sarapuu’s shipment of authentic Estonian beverages from Eesti have arrived, what else could you ask for!!”
So what else could possibly create a doubt, remember our motto. Just drop in for ten minutes or stay for the evening, no booking or formal arrangements are required. You will meet friendly Estonians, enjoy a great meal, sample fantastic wines, Saku Kuld, Valge Viin and Eesti Cider. Drop in after being out elsewhere or come for the evening we will have fantastic music videos. This will be the Esto Pub Night that you will meet all of your old friends! More details can be seen at www.estopubnight.com or find us on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=245180972185890
SBS’s Audio and Language Content Division is looking for a part time Executive Producer for the Estonian Language Program.
Work Area: Audio & Language Content
Salary: Band 4: $65,973 – $71,406
Work Type: Specified Period – Part Time
Location: Melbourne, City, Sydney, Artarmon
Part time 15 hours/week, (full time equivalent salary $65,973-$71,406)
You will be responsible for creating and broadcasting audio content for the Estonian-speaking community. You’ll be required to research, write, produce, sub-edit, translate and present audio content on radio and online. The right person will be an effective communicator, with a sound knowledge and understanding of the Estonian community, culture and issues, and possess proven experience in creating innovative radio broadcasting.
You’ll need to be proficient in written and spoken Estonian and English (successful applicants will be required to pass a language assessment). A background in journalism and broadcasting is preferred. This position involves rostered shift work and successful candidates must be able to undertake shift work (which may involve early morning, evening and weekend work).
Please note that the position will be based in Melbourne or Sydney and is being offered on a 12 month contract.
Please open the attachment below to view the Selection Criteria and Duty Statement. For further information about the position please contact Maurizio Pascucci on (03) 9949 2333.
Applications for the position must be lodged online recruitment@sbs.com.au by 5 pm on 31st of October 2011.
A radio story: We are the world’s most diverse radio network. Every day we transmit close to 100 hours of local, national and international news along with a mixture of current affairs, interviews, sport, music and community information in 68 languages. We are the only radio network able to reach all Australians because we broadcast in a multitude of languages.
Mitmed on tundnud puudust eestikeelsest raadiosaatest, mis sel talvel järsku lõpetati.
Tookordsele järelpärimistele vastati SBS-st, et oktoobris kuulutatakse välja eestikeelse raadiosaate juhtiv-produtsendi ametikoht. Nüüd ongi see toimunud, nagu allpool lugeda võib.
Oleks hea, kui meie ühiskonnas leiduks inimesi, kes oleks võimelised ja sooviks seda pooleajaga kohta täita ja eestikeelsed saated jälle käima paneks. Meil on veel küllaltki palju vanemaid inimesi, kes kas silmanägemise halvenemise pärast või muudel põhjustel eestikeelset saadet meeleldi kuulaks. Samuti oleks heas eesti keeles eestiainelist saadet kasulik kuulata eesti keele õpilastel, keda praegu juba peaaegu igas suuremas eestlaste keskuses on. Sajad siin ajutiselt viibivad noored ehk kuulaks ka meeleldi kodumaad meenutavat saadet. Ja kõigile oleks kasulik kuulda kiireloomulisi kohalikke uudiseid eestlaste kokkutulekutest ja sündmustest.
Teadet lugedes selgub, et peamisteks kvalifikatsioonideks on hea eesti ja inglise keele oskus, kohaliku eesti ühiskonna ja nende vajaduste tundmine, ajakirjanduslikud kogemused ning SBS-i ja riiklike nõudmiste teadmine. Kõikide kriteeriumite täitmine pole kerge, mis tähendab, et kandidaat peab nendes küsimustes end põhjalikult ette valmistama. Soovikorral võin informatsiooniotsimisel proovida aidata.
Tiiu Salasoo
EstDocs kuulutab 2011 Lühifilmikonkursi avatuks – tähtaeg 27. september 2011.a. EstDocs ootab osavõtjailt lühidokumentaalfilme teemal “eestlase rõõm”. Filmi sisu ja stiil on vaba, see võib olla mänguline või joonisfilm. Esitatud filmi pikkus peab olema kuni 7 minutit, lisaks tiitrite pikkus kuni 15 sekundit. Klõpsa saamaks osavõtureglementi, KKKi ja osavõtuankeeti.
Sir Arvi Parbo spoke at Estonian House in Melbourne to commemorate the 20 years of Estonian Independence. The transcript of his address is below.
I will speak first in Estonian, and then in English.
Lugupeetud koosviibijad,
Täna kakskümmend aastat tagasi taastati Eesti Vabariik. Seda tähistades tuletagem lühidalt meelde kuidas eestlased said iseseisvaks. Paljud meist täna siin teavad seda hästi aga aeg läheb edasi, uued põlvkonnad tulevad peale, ja mida kaugemale minevikku need sündmused jäävad seda tähtsam on et meie ajalooline mälu ei tuhmuks. Tähtpäevadel nagu täna on sobiv seda mälu värskendada.
Arvatakse, et eestlaste esivanemad saabusid Soome lahe lõunakaldale umbes 5000 aastat tagasi. Muinasajal neil ei olnud oma riiki, aga nad elasid vabadena kuni maa vallutati pärast kakskümmend aastat kestnud vastupanu 13. sajandi algusel ristiusu toojate poolt. Järgnes seitsesada aastat võõraste valitsejate all. Mitmed ülestõusud järgmiste sajandite jooksul olid ebaedukad, aga vabaduse tahe ei kadunud.
Esimese Maailmasõja lõpul olid mitmed suured maailmariigid lagunemas, mille üheks tagajärjeks oli nende osadest rahvusriikide tekkimine. Venemaa, mille ülemvõimu all eestlased olid olnud kakssada aastat, oli revolutsiooni ja kodusõja keerises. Eesti rahvuslik juhtkond kasutas lühikest aega enne maa Saksa vägede poolt okupeerimist veebruaris 1918 iseseisva Eesti Vabariigi välja kuulutamiseks.
Lääneriikide aktiivne vastuseis enamlaste revolutsioonile Venemaal aitas tugevalt kaasa järgneva Vabadussõja võitmiseks. Inglismaa, Prantsusmaa ja Itaalia tunnustasid Eesti Vabariiki, Inglismaa varustas vastmoodustatud Eesti sõjaväge relvadega ja nende laevastik kindlustas Eesti rannikut.
Vabadussõda lõppes Tartu rahulepinguga aastal 1920 milles kommunistlik Venemaa, hiljem Nõukogude Liiduks nimetatud, loobus ‘vabatahtlikult ning igaveseks ajaks kõigist õigustest mis olid Venemaal Eesti rahva ja maa kohta’. Sellest hoolimata toimus juba detsembris 1924 kommunistlik relvastatud mässukatse Eesti Vabariigi kukutamiseks, mis aga ebaõnnestus.
Lepingute ja lubaduste murdmine jätkus. Mais 1932 sõlmis Eesti Vabariik Nõukogude Liiduga kümneks aastaks mittekallaletungi lepingu, mis hiljem pikendati 1945. aasta lõpuni. Aga juba augustis 1939 jagasid Saksamaa ja Nõukogude Liit kurikuulsa Molotov-Ribbentropi pakti salajases osas omavahel Poola ja Baltimaad. Viimased jäid Nõukogude mõjusfääri. Septembris alguses Saksamaa ja siis Nõukogude Liit ründasid Poolat ja okupeerisid selle. Ähvardustega suruti Eestile, Lätile ja Leedule peale niinimetatud vastastikused abistamispaktid ja Nõukogude sõjaväe baasid, lubades aga mitte sekkuda nende riikide siseasjadesse. Mõni kuu hiljem, juunis 1940, õnnitles Stalin Hitlerit tema võidu puhul Prantsusmaa üle, marssis Baltimaadele sisse ja annekteeris need.
Nagu teame, ei kestnud Stalini ja Hitleri sõprus kaua. Aasta hiljem ründas Hitler Nõukogude Liitu ja Eesti okupeeriti Saksamaa poolt. Katse iseseisvust taastada Saksa vägede taandumisel septembris 1944 ei õnnestunud ja Eesti jäi peaaegu pooleks sajandiks teise Nõukogude okupatsiooni alla.
Augustis 1991 oli jälle ajalooline moment kus tekkis erakordselt soodus olukord iseseisvuse taastamiseks. Nõukogude Liit oli lagunemas. Ameerika Ühendriigid, Suurbritannia, ja teised lääneriigid polnud Baltimaade annektsiooni Nõukogude Liidu poolt tunnustanud. Välismaale jäänud Eesti Vabariigi esinduste ja Nõukogude teise okupatsiooni eest läände põgenenud eestlaste poolt oli okupatsiooni ebaseaduslikkus ja eestlaste vabadustahe pidevalt vaba maailma silmade ees hoitud ja seal tugevat poolehoidu leidnud. Nii nagu seitsekümmend kolm aastat varem, kasutati otsutavalt ja julgelt võimalust iseseisvuse ja Eesti Vabariigi taastamiseks. Tolleaegse Nõukogude Eesti Ülemnõukogu vastavat deklaratsiooni 20. augustil 1991 toetas kodu- ja välismaal elavatest endise Eesti Vabariigi kodanikest ja nende järeltulejatest koosnev Eesti Kongress.
Paljud riigid, Islandiga eesotsas, tunnustasid seda järgnevatel päevadel, nende hulgas Austraalia 27. augustil, ja veidi hiljem ka Vene Föderatsioon ja siis veel tegutsev Nõukogude Liit.
Eesti, Läti ja Leedu võeti septembris 1991 Ühendatud Rahvaste Organisatsiooni liikmeteks vastu ilma hääletuseta, tugeva aplausi saatel. Täna on Eesti peale selle veel Euroopa Liidu, Põhja-Atlandi Lepingu Organisatsiooni ja paljude muude rahvusvaheliste organisatsioonide liige, edukas ja lugupeetud demokraatlik riik , nagu ta oli varemgi.
Täna oleme vaba ja iseseisev, aga see ei tähenda et tulevik on nüüd kindlustatud. Vabaduse hoidmiseks tuleb pidevalt valvel olla. Meie kõige mõjuvam abinõu selleks on maailma avalik arvamine. Nii iseseisvuse saavutamisel kui ka selle taastamisel oli suur abi vaba maailma poolehoiust ja toetusest. Oma iseseisvust ja vabadust hoiame ja kindlustame kõige paremini sellega, et tegutseme ja käitume riigina, rahvana, ja ka üksikisikutena selliselt, et teenime maailma lugupidamise.
Mitmel viisil olemegi seda saavutanud. Eesti heliloojad ja muusika on maailmakuulsad, sportlased on tuntud maailma spordiareenidel, ja meie laulupeod on laialdast imetlust äratanud. Ehkki meil on omavahel küllalt lahkarvamisi nagu igas demokraatlikus riigis, pole me unustanud kuidas raskustele näkku vaadata ja tähtsates asjades kainelt ning vastutustundlikult käituda. Üks näidis on see, et praegu kui peaaegu kogu läänemaailm, isegi Ameerika Ühendriigid, ja Jaapan ägavad liigsete riigivõlgade ja eelarvepuudujääkide all, on Eesti üks vähestest maadest mis selle all ei kannata. Valitsus mis pidi selle saavutamiseks karme ja ebameeldivaid samme astuma valiti endisest suurema enamusega tagasi. Hiljuti, samal ajal kui Ameerika Ühendriikide krediidireiting alandati, tõsteti Eesti reitingut.
Lugupeetud koosviibijad, muistses vabadusvõitluses ristirüütlite ja teiste pealetungijate vastu ja vabaduse kaotusele järgenud ülestõusmistes järgmiste sajandite jooksul langes palju meie esivanemaid. Vabadussõjas langenutele on hilisema pool sajandit kestnud okupatsiooni ajal lisandunud, nii okupantide vägivalla läbi kui ka võitlustes pealetungijatega, veel kümneid tuhandeid inimkaotusi, mehi, naisi ja lapsi. Paljud nendest on teadmata ja nimedeta haudades. Iseseisvuse taastamine augustis 1991 ei nõudnud õnneks nendel päevadel inimohvreid, aga Eesti rahvas on ajaloo jooksul oma vabaduse eest kõrget hinda maksnud.
Tähistame iseseisvuse taastamise kahekümnendat aastapäeva teadmises, et ehkki raskusi on palju, Eesti Vabariik on teel ôiges suunas. Austame ja mäletame neid nii kodu- kui ka välismaal kes meie muistsete esivanemate ja hilisemate iseseisvuse loojate pärandi vääriliselt vabaduse ideed poole sajandilise okupatsiooni ajal üleval hoidsid, selle eest vôitlesid, kannatasid ja langesid, ja kes vôimalust iseseisvuse taastamiseks 20. augustil 1991 julgelt ja otsustavalt kasutasid. Soovime ônne ja jôudu kôigile, kes viimase kahekümne aasta jooksul on Eesti parema tuleviku heaks töötanud, ja kes seda tööd jätkavad.
Soovime Eesti Vabariigile ja kôigile kaasmaalastele edu ja kôike head tulevikus.
May I now repeat my comments in English.
The Republic of Estonia was restored twenty years ago today. Commemorating this, let us briefly recall how Estonians became independent. Many of us here today know it well but time passes, new generations take over, and the more distant these events become the more important it is that our historical memory does not fade. Occasions such as today’s are fitting for refreshing this memory.
The ancestors of the Estonians are thought to have arrived at the southern coast of the Finnish Gulf some 5,000 years ago. In ancient times they did not have a national structure but lived as free people until they were conquered after twenty years of resistance at the beginning of the 13th century by Christianising crusaders. For the next seven hundred years they were under foreign overlords. A number of uprisings during the following centuries were unsuccessful, but the desire for freedom was not lost.
At the end of World War I a number of large empires were breaking up, one result of which was the emergence of nation states from parts of them. In Russia, under which the Estonians had been for two hundred years, there was revolution and civil war. Estonian national leaders used the short time before the country was occupied by German forces in February 1918 to declare an independent Republic of Estonia.
The active opposition of the western countries to the bolshevik revolution in Russia helped greatly in winning the War of Independence which followed. Britain, France and Italy recognised the Republic of Estonia, Britain supplied armaments to the newly created Estonian armed forces, and the British navy guarded the Estonian coast.
The War of Independence ended with the Peace Treaty of Tartu in 1920 in which communist Russia, later renamed the Soviet Union, solemnly pledged to ‘unreservedly recognise the independence of Estonia and renounce voluntarily and forever every sovereign right Russia has ever had on the Estonian land and people’. In spite of this, there was already in December 1924 an armed communist attempt to seize power in the Republic of Estonia which was, however, unsuccessful.
The breaking of agreements and promises continued. In May 1932 the Republic of Estonia and the Soviet Union concluded for ten years a non-aggression pact, later extended to the end of 1945. But already in August 1939 Germany and the Soviet Union divided in the secret part of the infamous Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact Poland and the Baltic States between them, the latter left in the sphere of influence of the Soviet Union. In September first Germany and then the Soviet Union attacked Poland and occupied it. So-called mutual cooperation treaties and Soviet military bases were forced with threats on Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, although with promises not to become involved in the internal affairs of these States. Some months later, in June 1940, Stalin congratulated Hitler on his victory over France, marched into the Baltic States, and annexed these.
As we know, the friendship of Stalin and Hitler did not last long. A year later Hitler attacked the Soviet Union and Estonia was occupied by Germany. An attempt to restore the independence when German forces retreated in September 1944 did not succeed and Estonia remained for nearly half a century under the second Soviet occupation.
In August 1991 there was again a historic moment when there was an extraordinarily favourable situation for restoring the independence. The Soviet Union was breaking up. United States of America, Great Britain, and other western countries had not recognised the annexation of the Baltic States by the Soviet Union. Representatives of the Republic of Estonia who had remained abroad and Estonians who had escaped to the west ahead of the second occupation by the Soviet Union had kept the illegality of the occupation and the desire of Estonians for freedom before the free world, and found strong support. Similarly to seventy three years earlier, determined and bold use was made of the opportunity to restore the Republic of Estonia. The appropriate declaration by the then Estonian Supreme Soviet on 20 August 1991 was supported by the Estonian Congress, consisting of citizens of the original Republic of Estonia and their successors at home and abroad.
Many countries, led by Iceland, recognised this in the following days, including Australia on 27 August, and a little later also the Russian Federation and the then still existing Soviet Union.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were in September 1991 admitted as members of the United Nations unanimously, without voting, and accompanied by strong applause. Today Estonia is in addition a member of the European Union, NATO, and many other international organisations, a successful and respected democratic country, as it had been earlier.
Today we are independent, but this does not mean that the future is now assured. One has to remain continually alert to maintain freedom. Our most effective means for this is world opinion. The support and assistance of the free world was of great help, both in achieving independence and in restoring it. We can best maintain and secure our independence by acting and behaving as a State, as a nation, and as individuals so as to earn the respect of the world.
In various ways this is being achieved. Estonian composers and music are world famous, sportsmen and -women are known in world arenas, and the national singing festivals are widely admired. Although there are many disagreements among ourselves, as there are in any democratic country, we have not forgotten how to face adversity and how to behave soberly and responsibly in important matters. One example of this is that, while almost the whole western world, even the United States of America, and Japan groan under excessive government debt and budget deficits, Estonia is one of the few countries not to suffer from this. The Government which had to introduce austerity measures and take unpleasant steps to achieve this was re-elected with an increased majority. Recently, while the credit rating of the United States of America was reduced, the rating of Estonia was increased.
Ladies and gentlemen, many of our ancestors fell in the battles against the crusaders and other aggressors and in the uprisings during the centuries following the loss of ancient freedom. To the fallen in the War of Independence were later added during the nearly half a century of occupations, by the hand of the occupiers and in fighting against them, tens of thousands of human losses, men, women, and children. Many of them are in nameless graves. The restoration of the independence in August 1991 fortunately did not involve loss of life, but during their history the Estonian people have paid a high price for their freedom.
We commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the restoration of independence in the knowledge that, although there are many difficulties, the Republic of Estonia is proceeding in the right direction. We honour and remember all those in Estonia and abroad who, worthy of the inheritance of our distant ancestors and those who later established our independence, kept alive the desire for freedom during a half a century of occupation, fought, suffered and fell for it, and those who boldly and decisively used the opportunity to restore independence on 20 August 1991. We congratulate and thank all those who during the last twenty years have worked for a better future for Estonia, and who are continuing to do so.
We wish the Republic of Estonia and all Estonians success and the very best in the future.
The Committee of the XXIV Estonian Festival in Australia hereby announces a competition for a design for a
LOGO for the XXIV Estonian Festival
The logo shall include the following information:
„XXIV EESTI PÄEVAD SYDNEY 2012″
The logo should reflect aspects of Estonian cultural heritage, it must be suitable for reproduction as a lapel pin as well as for use in general advertisements and letterheads.
The size of the design should be about 10 cm.
The designs will be judged by a panel selected by the Festival Committee and will become the property of the Estonian Festival Committee. The winner will receive $ 200.00. The designs must be sent in an envelope bearing a pseudonym, together with a sealed envelope giving the author’s name and address.
The designs must be forwarded by September 20, 2011 and posted to: „Eesti Päevade märk” PO Box 147, Darlinghurst NSW 1300.
The Baltic “Black & White” Ball will be held on Saturday, 13 August 2011 at 7pm a the Lithuanian Club. There will be a welcoming drink and European antipasto on arrival, a delicious three-course meal, live band and raffle. Drinks can be purchased at the bar. Free street parking available.
When
Saturday August 13th, 2011
From 7pm
Where
The Lithuanian Club
16-20 Meredith Street
Bankstown 2200, at 7.00 p.m. till late.
Tickets
Tickets are $50/head (young children free) and can be ordered on (02) 9708 1414 or (02) 9412 4540
E-mail: contactus@lithuanianclub.org.au
Cheques can be made out to The Lithuanian Club and posted to the above address.
The Australian Chamber Orchestra will perform new work by Estonian composer Erkki-Sven Tüür on a 9 date tour across Australia, including Canberra., Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.
TÜÜR New Work (World Premiere) WIENIAWSKI Violin Concerto No.2 BEETHOVEN Symphony No.6, “Pastoral” Richard TognettiArtistic Director and Lead Violin
The most unashamedly beautiful of Beethoven’s symphonies, perfect for the sweet, burnished sound of the ACO strings, the radiant Pastoral swirls with the sounds of bucolic breezes, brooks, birds and storms.
Richard Tognetti performs the quintessential Romantic violin concerto, full of dazzling technique, lush harmonies and swooning melodies. Critically acclaimed as “inspired, compelling”, Tüür’s music for the ACO is both clever and moving.
As part of its nationwide Rapture tour, the Australian Chamber Orchestra explores, through collaboration with Lacey, the scope of the recorder’s versatility across genres and eras. Traversing the pristine, rapid solo passages of a Telemann concerto, ACO arrives at the more volatile sound worlds of newly commissioned works by Estonian composer Erkki-Sven Tüür (b. 1959) and Perth-based James Ledger (b. 1966). The program concludes with a lush string orchestra arrangement (sans recorder) of Verdi’s String Quartet in E minor, perhaps an odd addition but not without musical antecedents to the sweeping romanticism found in Tüür’s offering.
Erkki-Sven Tüür often draws inspiration for his work from landscapes in which he perceives ‘the presence of both movement and stillness.’ Whistles and Whispers from Uluru (2007) combines the rich birdsong of the composer’s native surrounds (the Baltic Sea) with the hum of a starkly different environment: that of the Australian desert.
Tüür is not the first European composer to be taken with this country’s flora and fauna: Messiaen was famously entranced by lyrebird song during his excursion to the Brindabella Ranges in Canberra. Whistles and Whispers opens with similarly ecstatic, birdlike swoops and flourishes from the sopranino recorder, melting microtonally into a dialogue of crisp string pizzicato and shimmering chords described by the composer as ‘soundclouds’. Tüür’s atmospheric use of strings is not far removed from the glassy violin harmonics in the music of countryman Arvo Pärt, but, instead of eerie austerity, he achieves a charged, gestural drama. It is as if each sustained chord represents the composer’s view of the imposing rock formation from a new and humbling angle.
This sense of awe and discovery is echoed by forays into the recorder’s arsenal of extended techniques (eg. multiphonics, twin recorders). The piece moves gradually through the recorder family, reaching its climax on a large tenor played like a shakuhachi to evoke the dry desert wind. Finally, Lacey retreats symmetrically through various instrument sizes and tessituras to return to the original sopranino, as if Tüür had pressed the rewind button on evolution. Resonate Magazine, 19.12.07, Melissa Lesnie
The appearance of any new work by leading Estonian composer Erkki-Sven Tuur should be an international event. Commissioned by a generous ACO patron in Perth, Peter Dawson, Whistles and Whispers from Uluru inhabited two worlds, the natural soundscape alongside more contemporary dimensions. For an unsettling 16 minutes, Tuur’s subtle imagination veered between fascination and trepidation. The Australian
Erkki-Sven Tüür’s Whistles and Whispers from Uluru, is a musical tribute to Australia. Music of shifting tonalities and rhythmic changes, of whispering bird-like suggestions and sounds standing in space, it effectively uses multiple recorders in solo from the highest in register to the lowest. It was realised in a performance of assumed brilliance from the soloist, with firmly shaped support. W.L. Hoffmann, Canberra Times (7 November 2007)
Estonian composer Erkki-Sven Tüür’s Whistles and Whispers from Uluru began suggestively enough with Lacey’s sopranino instrument imitating bird twitterings before moving into more solid territory, the soloist working through the work with a full range of recorders from soprano to bass and back again. Like the Ledger piece, this also invited the listener to watch out for changing textures, the orchestra underpinning their soloist with impressively unpredictable textures that served as a meleonic foil for Lacey’s conscientious delineation of a taxing, rapidly moving dominant thread in this intriguing piece. Clive O’Connell, The Age (8 November 2007)
If you want to be a leader at Sorve 2012, you have less than a week to get your forms in! The invitation is open to all Sorve Sobrad members and all leadership positions are currently vacant. All applications will be considered.
RSVP’s are now due for the Winter Wonderland Pidu.
Tickets are available at the door, so you can pay on the night. However we do need numbers for catering purposes, so please RSVP at the Sorve Family Facebook site,
or send an email to admin@sorve.org.au
It should be a great night. Dinner, DJ, Auction, Door prizes.
…Don’t panic about getting a babysitter either. Bring the kids along with a blanket and pillow, there’s a supervised movie upstairs for the younger kids
On 25 June 2011 ECrew organised Midsummer Day celebration on Karl and Sandra Karu’s big property. Weatherman had blown away all the nasty dark clouds from last night and showed us wonderful sunny weather. It stayed like this all evening, only few drops of rain at the end of the night – it wouldn’t be real Jaanipäev without it.
Guest started to arrive from 4 pm and altogether there were 167 people, including 10 children. In addition to Estonia there were people from Germany, Portugal, Ireland and England.
After honouree consul Anu Van Hattem and play leader Katrena Tenno had their speeches, bonfire was lit by girl named Janeri (traditionally it has to be Jaan or Jaanika, so Janeri was closest). Fire was biggest some young Estonians had seen in years!
To make room for some more food, different games were played: throwing eggs, throwing a gumboot, rope pulling and the favourite sport among Estonians – carrying a woman.
The main event of the evening was dancing Kaerajaan around the bonfire, at least half of the participants were dancing at once.
People were dancing, singing and laughing for hours, children had fun making Spiderman masks and everybody was able to buy some rye bread and liver pate!
Event was great success and we will definitely do it again next year!
What do you do for a living and what role does “Art” play in your life?
Occupation wise I am a family doctor and I work about 60% time at present but I am planning to slow down gradually even more. My main interest lies in emotional trauma and particularly childhood memory. I do a little undergraduate teaching in that domain.
However perhaps I see my life, aside from my family whom I treasure, as a kind of a triangle. One side is formed by my work, another by my painting and the third by my writing. Thus each touches the other two. At times my major efforts are polarised on one aspect, at others on another.
What inspires you to paint?
Painting wise I am essentially a story teller: I like to paint series of paintings. Among them was a series called “This nearly was mine” as indeed it nearly was as we departed on the day that the gates to and from Estonia were to be closed for the next half a century. The exhibition depicted in paint and poetry my first return to the once war torn Estonia nearly sixty years later. It was later exhibited in Tallinn as “Peaaegu ka minu”. Among the other series have been “The Soul of New York”, and “Icy warm Iceland” where I shared my perceptions of life in these places but again mostly depicted through buildings.
The stories in the paintings tend to tell of how people meet the negatives of life by converting them into challenges: Perhaps the bright colours, together with a cryptic title a method of engaging the viewer. Who would bother to walk up to a dreary grey, brown or purple image to find out what it is about!
In your last exhibition, urban landscapes dominate as the main theme. What inspirations do you draw from them? How do you see Melbourne?
Why pick buildings? They are more readily used for symbolism as they are manmade as are most of man’s misfortunes! The paintings can be adapted to emphasize something important and irrelevances can be omitted or attenuated. Nature does not lend itself to that.
For this exhibition, buildings do predominate: The purpose of the exhibition was to launch my book called “The Soul of Melbourne”. Melbourne is mostly buildings. But the narrative gives the book a lot of depth as embroidered into it is the story of a refugee kid.
“Minu Melbourne” has many facets as you would see in the book: Since I grew up among the industrial culture (a term which I prefer to the “blue collar” which to me tends to have racist connotations) I have warmth for those people who work hard and long to give their children some of the opportunities which more affluent children take for granted.
You say that your perspective on Melbourne is influenced by your childhood as a refugee. Is there anything else that shapes this perception?
Yes,’ life is but a journey where all our experiences one day share a place’, to quote from my book. Many things have influenced my perception of Melbourne and indeed my world. When one has met life at its most precarious both physically and materially the glitz of life becomes nebulous. One learns to treasure “those tiny, bright and shiny imperceptible specks which are readily missed to become part of the ultimate canvas”. As I wander around I tend to notice things which many would not notice: things such as the silvery moon lighting the branches of barren winter trees which are dwarfed by the CBD vast monoliths.
Perhaps I learned this skill in my childhood world where language and trust barriers accentuated what one’s eyes needed to absorb, at that time for one’s safety. Such observations of wonderment can now occur in many settings both among adversity and prosperity.
While one remains focussed on this there is little time to reflect on our warring factions or how to reconcile how one is to love and hate the same people: A legacy I inherited from my parents. Father was a German soldier passing through Estonia during World War II. When one’s mind is left free of wander one becomes acutely aware that to be born between warring cultures is to be born into a vacuum with no soil upon which to place one’s feet. How does one reconcile that without that ugly war one would not have been: That without it many, many others would have been.
My work as a clinician too has influenced my writing and painting themes. As I reflect on the forty plus years as a clinician I marvel at the fortitude of mankind: I fondly admire our refugee cohort and at times grieve for those whose lives have been irreparably fractured. I realise that human warmth is the greatest commodity we can offer each other.
I relish the peaceful mountain sides; perhaps a legacy of my memories of Geislingen which was nestled in a valley. There is something magical about trees and the mist.
My perfect world is to wander about in the mist of the mountainside daydreaming about what to paint and write about in a way that meaningfully reaches those around: Of course with the needed knowledge that my two treasured sons are OK.
Have you painted Estonian landscapes?
Once I retire I do have plans to paint the Estonian landscape: To date my trips to Estonia have been too truncated to spend time painting. Retirement will allow me the luxury of absorbing the landscape authentically and not painting it a la Australiana which is offensive to both terrains. Pühajärv kindlasti ootab mind!Painting is something which has always been part of me: A twenty four hour day put constraints on it for a few decades but even then as I reflect on my medical student days I suspect that I enjoyed the drawing bit more than learning what the drawings meant. I can’t say that I have any noble explanation for why I like painting or indeed why I do anything else.
You have a strong psychological interest in memories and oral history folklore that have inspired you to write…
My writing is not nearly as colourful: it has a psycho-philosophical bent and tends to be delving. It again explores the courage of people especially of children caught in mankind’s scrimmages. I tend to approach that more from the oral history format rather than interview format. As you can see from “When the Noise had Ended” I tend to like the material to be in first voice as it eliminates the risk of artefacts of my perception which interview format might create.
At present I am working towards two other books about our people, again to be written about how things looked through the eyes of the young, but with the goal of sharing with the world the courage of our parents. The books are “Hats off to our Parents” which will be about the memories of the young about war-time Estonia and the journey to the camps, and the other will be about our memories of the first five years in our new lands.
Estonian backpackers who have recently arrived are enthusiastic and passionate about their travels to the other side of the world. However, such sentiments are not felt for those post war arrivals. Do you think this is due to the traumatic experience of war?
Australian Estonians of the WW II cohort had a difficult beginning. In the culture of the time of our arrival, assimilation appeared to be defined as losing who one was and becoming another rather than respecting one another. Many of us lived as chameleons out of respect for the country that adopted us. Times have now changed, as my book shares: Today Australia treasures the diversity of culture that the arrival of our cohort pioneered. The time now is ripe to explore that powerful journey which our people have traversed. Some may see it as wallowing but to me it symbolises the recapitulation of a journey which may give courage to other refugees who will travel in our shoes.
Much has been written about emotional trauma: perhaps it has been somewhat skewed. It is difficult to know how this happens. Perhaps the most important assets anyone can have are human warmth, and a sense of belonging and relevance. Perhaps we dig too deep into the ghoulish dungeons and forget that the trauma may be in the present and not in the past. Sharing of reminiscences is a privilege of increasing age. Many of our folk are remote from each other and thus deprived of the privilege of sharing accounts of the time when they met their greatest challenges.
Elective immigration and travel are vastly different to flight from terror and distress. For the former there is a preconceived notion of new worlds to be met and experienced: There is time to plan and select the itinerary be it for months or a lifetime. There is the choice of saying goodbye or at least ‘auf wiedersehen’ to Estonia. They have the secure choice of staying in contact with their families in Estonia. And let us not forget there is in Oz an existing network of their forefathers from the WW II cohort to point them in the right direction.
Our people had no opportunity to say goodbye and many have not have had the opportunity to return and say hello. They were cast to wander into the wilderness not knowing whether there would be a home or if they would even be alive to need one. They forfeited many loved ones and lost many on the trek. Time heals and helps people reconcile but at times one lifetime is not enough to achieve this mammoth task.
What other projects are you currently involved in?
I am very much involved with the War Child Studies project in UK. Currently I am focussing on the long term outcomes of childhood refugees.
To ensure some balance of perception of life I am working on a book in a similar vein to the “Soul of Melbourne”. It will be about the Australian Outback: Perhaps with some focus on how the Kooris have become lost in their own wilderness.
