On September 21, Estonian composer Raimo Kangro, one of the most distinguished representatives of neoclassical stylistic inclination, would have celebrated his 60th birthday. In that case, a memorial concert will take place in Estonia Concert Hall on September 21. To commemorate Raimo Kangro, Estonia’s Klassikaraadio has scheduled a number of broadcasts about the composer in September.
Raimo Kangro was born in 1949 in Tartu and graduated from the Tallinn State Conservatoire in 1973 with Jaan Rääts and Eino Tamberg.
Kangro’s musical idiom is characterized by vigorous rhythmic pulse and stylistic loans from popular music and archaic styles. In his output, the genre of instrumental concerto holds a central position: he has written 12 concertos for various solo instruments and orchestra, including three concertos for two solo pianos. Rich musical imagery opens in Kangro’s “Displays” scored from 1991 to 2000 – a 12-part instrumental series portraying historical personages and mythical creatures. In his multifarious stage work musicals for children stand beside the operas that belong to the vanguard of Estonia’s stage work, such as the profoundly psychological Victim (1981) written after Aleksey Tolstoy’s dramatic story The Serpent, or Uku and Ecu (1997), a parody on Estonian identity and contemporary world politics with Karl August Hermann's singspiel Uku and Vanemuine (1907) as a prototype, or the last opera, The Heart (1999), a rich grotesque on Estonian society and the global problems. The more lyrical side of Kangro’s talent occurs in his vocal music, especially in his works on the words by his wife, the poetess Leelo Tungal, and the daughters Kirke and Maarja Kangro.
At various times, Raimo Kangro has been working as a music director of the Estonian Television and director of the Estonian Music Foundation. He also was engaged as an adviser, vice-chairman and chairman of the Estonian Composers’ Union. From 1989 until his death he served as one of the artistic directors of the Estonian Music Days Festival and was Estonian Academy of Music’s composition faculty member.
State Concert Agency Eesti Kontsert celebrates Raimo Kangro’s 60th birthday anniversary with a concert in Estonia Concert Hall on September 21st, 7 p.m., Latvian pianists Raffi Kharajanyan and Reinis Zariņš, percussion ensemble PaukenfEst, and soloists Mihkel Peäske (flute) and Toomas Vavilov (clarinet) participating. The programme includes Kangro’s „Variations on Latvian Folk Melody” for two pianos (1990), „Display V“: „Portrait of Angel“ for flute, clarinet and two pianos (1993), Suite for piano (1968, arrangement for the percussion ensemble), Sonata for two pianos (1981), 1st movement from „Three Estonian Folk Melodies“ for flute (1992) and „Display I“: „Portrait of Steve Reich“ for two pianos and percussion (1991).
Estonian Composers’ Union commemorates Raimo Kangro in the framework of a meeting series „Who Are You, Composer?” on September 20 at 5 pm in Composers’ House, were his close relatives, friends, colleagues and students – Olav Ehala, Tõnu Kaljuste, Raffi Haradžanjan, Tõnu Kõrvits, Timo Steiner, Ülo Krigul, David Vseviov, Kai Ups, Leelo Tungal and Maarja Kangro – will share their memories about the composer. Piano music of Kangro will be performed by Nata-Ly Sakkos and Toivo Peäske. On the second floor of the Composers’ House Kangro’s office-museum will be opened for this night only.
At the end of September, Estonian Public Broadcasting’s channel of classical and contemporary music, Klassikaraadio, is going to broadcast a selection of interviews and talks shows with and about Raimo Kangro. On September 21, Klassikaraadio will broadcast the jubilee concert from Estonia Concert Hall.