Estonian Military Orchestra marks anniversary with concerts in Viljandi and Tallinn
The Estonian Military Orchestra will celebrate the 108th anniversary of Estonian military music and the fifth anniversary of operating within the Estonian War Museum with birthday concerts on 7 October at Viljandi Pauluse Church and on 8 October at the Estonia Concert Hall in Tallinn.
The concerts are also an expression of continued support for Ukraine: guest conductor will be Major Lyubomir Sukennik, head of the Military Music Center of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The program includes works by Estonian composers as well as Ukrainian national music. Both concerts are charitable in nature. The ticket revenue from the Viljandi concert will be donated to the NGO Sõdurilt Sõdurile, which supports Ukrainian frontline units primarily by purchasing non‑lethal equipment and medical supplies.
According to Samuel Jalakas, head of the Estonian Military Orchestra, the five years within the Estonian War Museum have been active. "State ceremonies and official events are our daily work, but all the more we are pleased to give two public concerts for this year's birthday, to thank our audience and supporters who have stood by us in turbulent times," Jalakas said. "It is also a great joy that Major Lyubomir Sukennik from Odesa can join us on stage, with whom we already had good cooperation at the jazz ensemble concerts held in Tallinn this spring."
The Ukrainian orchestra has been familiar to the Estonian public since May 2022, when Ukraine's largest classical music festival in exile was held in Tallinn for the first time. During the concerts broadcast on ETV and ETV2, television viewers donated a total of 30,000 euros, half of which was directed specifically toward purchasing bulletproof vests for members of this orchestra. This spring, a smaller ensemble of the orchestra visited Tallinn, with a series of concerts and charity performances, also together with the Estonian Military Orchestra.
The beginning of Estonian military music is considered to be the founding of the 1st Infantry Regiment's orchestra on 24 November 1918. This is also the birthday of the Estonian Military Orchestra, which over more than a century has carried the names of the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Defense, the Tallinn Garrison Orchestra, and the Defense Forces Orchestra. Since 1 October 2021, it has operated under the name Estonian Military Orchestra within the Estonian War Museum.
--
Editor: Kaspar Viilup, Argo Ideon
