Tauno Aints
June 19, 1975 TartuMember of the Estonian Composers' Union since 2004
Tauno Aints has graduated from the piano class of Ene Koppel in Tartu I Children’s Music School and Miina Härma Tartu II Secondary School. In 1998, Aints graduated from the Viljandi Culture College in popular music (tutors Evald Raidma and Guldžahon Jussufi) and in 2004, Estonian Academy of Music cum laude in composition with Prof. Lepo Sumera and Helena Tulve.
Aints is valued musical theatre composer. His popular children’s musical Karlsson on the Roof is on the stage of the Estonian National Opera for the fourth season, Toomas Edur’s ballet Modigliani, the Cursed Artist on the music of Tauno Aints already for the seventh season. Since its premiere in 2013, opera Rehepapp is continually in the repertoire of Theatre Vanemuine. In 2017, children’s opera Guugelmuugelpunktkomm premiered at Vanemuine Theatre, Estonian National Ballet brought the ballet Catherine I (directed by Toomas Edur) on the stage in 2018. Aints’s works for stage have been performed as guest performances in Finnish National Opera (Rehepapp 2014, conductor Paul Mägi) and The Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow (Modigliani, the Cursed Artist 2019, conductor Lauri Sirp).
Aints in cooperation with Arvo Pärt made an instrumental arrangments to Pärt’s children’s songs that was released on CD Songs from Childhood in 2015 which achieved the Estonian popular music prize Golden Disc 2016 in the category of Album of the Year.
As the commission of the Pärnu Music Festival, overture Estonia was first performed by the Estonian Festival Orchestra under the baton of Paavo Järvi in July 2014.
From among Aints’s earlier works, contemporary arrangement of Gustav Ernesaks’s famous song for children "Train Trip" for X Youth Song Celebration in 2007 (conductor Aarne Saluveer), staged cantata Time to Love performed in 2009 at Birgitta Festival (stage director Mare Tommingas, conductor Mihhail Gerts), dance performance Mowgli premiered in Theatre Vanemuine in 2010 (stage director Mare Tommingas, conductor Aivo Välja) and ballet The Giving Tree first performed at Nargenfestival in 2011 (stage director Marina Kesler, conductor Tõnu Kaljuste) have received widest public attention.
Tauno Aints has been cooperated with all leading musical collectives in Estonia – Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Estonian National Male Choir, Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Tallinn Chamber Orchestra and others. In September 2013, Aints’s Concerto for Electric Guitar and Mixed Choir was first performed by Marzi Nyman and Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir conducted by Daniel Reuss, in January 2019 the same work was released by Toccata Next on CD Estonian Incantation 1.
As a highly valued arranger, Aints has cooperated with Liisi Koikson, Lenna Kuurmaa, Tõnis Mägi, Sepo Seeman, Lauri Saatpalu, Curly Strings and other notable Estonian artists. His creative versatility was vividly expressed in 2006 when he attracted the international attention with the program Raua needmine (Curse upon Iron) created of arrangements of music by Veljo Tormis and ensemble Metsatöll.
2002–2007, Aints was active as a pop musician in the ensemble Genialistid. Aints was a composer-in-residence at the Estonian National Male Choir for the season 2007/2008. In 2007, Tauno Aints was ascribed the Riho Päts School Music Foundation Stipendium, in 2009, the Heino Eller Music Prize and Stipendium of Veljo Tormis Fund in 2017. In 2023, Tauno Aints was awarded the Music Prize of the Estonian Music Council.
© EMIK 2017
Updated in October 2023
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