The Song Festival tradition has always been an essential part of the Estonian national identity and as such the two have always reflected each other. Both the joys and sorrows of our nation have been expressed in the repertoires of the festival. At the same time the festival has often served as a reminder during difficult times of a brighter future ahead and has played a crucial part in bringing and holding the nation together.

The carefully selected 26 recordings will take you on a journey through the festival’s 150 year long history. They will help you discover the songs which have an extra special spot in the hearts of Estonians and what songs have played a leading role in our history. “Mu isamaa on minu arm” by Gustav Ernesaks may be the most famous of them but is not the only one.

What makes the album even more exciting is that all the tracks are live recordings from different Song Festivals from 1933 (the oldest surviving sound recording of a Song Festival!) to the 21st century. Therefore, you can observe the progress in both singing and recording techniques in addition to the songs themselves.

The album is accompanied by a booklet with plenty of background information about the history of the song festival. There’s an analysis of socio-cultural effect of song festivals by historian Mart Laar (in both English and Estonian) as well as commentaries about the different aspects of the repertoire. What is more, we have definitely not forgotten about the visuals - the beautifully designed booklet is illustrated with a wide variety of photographs, artworks and souvenirs of the song festivals.

CD1

Koit 1938
Priiuse hommikul 1938
Ärka üles, isamaa 1933
Enne ja nüüd 1999
Eks teie tea 2004
Mu isamaa on minu arm 1994
Sind surmani  1994
Ilus oled, isamaa  2014
Kaunimad laulud 1985
Põhjavaim 1999
Meeste laul  1965
Noored sepad  2014
Isamaa mälestus 1990


CD2
Koit 1969
Tuljak 1980
Meil aiaäärne tänavas 1990
Hakkame, mehed, minema 1947
Mu isamaa on minu arm fragment 1947
Mu isamaa on minu arm 1990
Ühte laulu tahaks laulda 1999
Ärkamise aeg 1990
Helin 2014
Laul põhjamaast  1994
Muusika  2014
Kodumaa  1965
Ta lendab mesipuu poole  1999