However, once we had started, the experience was exhilarating. The streets were full of people, many of whom gave a particularly warm welcome to the lads from GB. Waving crowds, some of whom wanted to shake hands with us, and cries of ‘Welcome to Estonia’ and ‘God Save the Queen!’ Our tourist board at home had provided us with stickers to distribute, and so there are 200 or so children in Estonia wearing badges, announcing ‘I am a Bury St Edmunds’ Lover’!

Entry into the Song festival grounds was exciting, walking through swathes of people, but most amazing of all, was to enter the Festival arena, with overwhelming numbers of people.

We had visited the Song Grounds before, but then there was just the 80 strong group of ourselves, and a concrete mixer, which we asked to be switched off, so we could have a ‘Singing Opportunity’ on the hallowed steps……. but………WOW! A complete sea of faces, stretching back to the trees at the top of the hill, below the trees, even sitting in the trees to watch.

Many of us had never seen so many people together in one place at one time, and a great roar of Welcome! On the stage were the leading conductors, including Prof. Kuno Areng, Musical director of ETAM, who shook my hand warmly. Ernesaks benignly watched from afar!

We knew in advance that the Festival Committee had only asked us to sing on Sunday, and then only in the Male Voice Section. They were concerned about the amount of learning that would be involved, especially in a minority language. I understand there have been problems previously with choirs, who showed great interest, until push came to shove, and they had to knuckle down to the hard grind of learning the music and words. I like to think that one of the things that helped us, is our performance tradition. Let me explain further. There is a strong tradition among many British choirs, especially in the Male Voice Tradition, of performing without the use of sheet music. It comes from our origins in the Welsh Valleys, and either side of the Pennines, when community choirs were formed, who could not afford for each person to have individual music. What it does mean is that we watch the conductor and respond to every nuance that he wishes to bring out on the night. It also means that you develop a very positive approach to learning new stuff!

Only very carefully selected choirs perform on the Saturday - as far as I know the cream of indigenous choirs like our partner choirs ETAM and Emajoe Laulikud - with no foreigners. Our turn was to come on the Sunday, in the big concert. We sat for a while, and listened, but when it started to rain heavily, headed off for the refreshments tent, to whet our whistles. Here, there was an alternative festival taking place, with an impromptu band of about 30 folk musicians had come together, and were playing away for anyone who would listen or dance. It was symptomatic of the whole weekend, that people of all sorts were dancing, of all nationalities, of all ages, of all styles, with a conga weaving between, folk dancers, Ballroom dance, dramatic Ballet movements, and the social shuffle of those with two right feet!

Sunday the sun shines on us. Some of us squeezed in a visit to the Dance Festival, but timing was tight between the two. We needed to be across town quickly as they were shutting down access roads, but we also needed to change into our Uniform. We were much amused by Enn, our host, who pulled up at a very smart restaurant. I don’t know what was said, but within seconds, an upstairs conference centre was put at our disposal to change in, and we amused many of the guests, who could hardly believe the transformation in minutes, from jeans and sports shirts, to dinner jackets, bow tie and scarves.

So, what did we learn to sing? In answering this, I must declare that each one of us had his favourites among these songs, so the comments are rather personal to me.

Before our invitation to take part could be secured, we had to learn and submit a recording of ‘See oli siis’. This is an incredibly difficult song for a non-native speaker, as each phrase is like a sandwich with long slow chords at beginning and end of the line, with a lot of fast scribble in between. We did the best we could with this, trying to ensure that the more ponderous notes were correct, and that the middle didn’t sound too horrendously wrong. Thankfully, we were accepted, but with the comment that we were a very good choir musically, but needed to practice more on our Estonian. We replied in thanks and said we would ensure that our few British voices, would not be heard above the thousands of native speakers.

In the year of Ernesaks’ centenary, ‘Hakkame, mehed, minema’ was one of those songs that caught the choir’s imagination, as much of the emotion of Get-up-and-go carries directly through the music. About a month before leaving for Estonia, we had a ‘Sing for Your Supper’ talent evening for the choir, and this was chosen as our number to perform to the rest and our guests. Ernesaks had a definite gift in being able to express himself musically, in a way, where the words merely underline his message, and it was certainly true of this one.

‘Isad ja pojad’ (Fathers and sons) was written especially for this Song Festival - “I look through the glass, and wonder why the stork chooses my roof to nest, and what will happen to you?”

The song varies from stately verses to a chorus which builds up into rapid conversation with the two choir sections alternating. A complete tongue- twister for foreigners. ‘Lopugs isaid ja poegi, sarsasilmil lapselapsi, lapselapselapsilapse, lapselapsi, lapselapselapsi, polve peale saetakse’ Even some of the native speakers around us were muddling their ‘lapse’s and ‘lapsi’s.

We also performed ‘Kuldrannake’ ( Golden Shore) with a beautiful, wistful tune, and the more assertive ‘Teratus’ (Greeting),

I think that for all of us, by far the most moving and emotional song, and worth the journey just to participate in that alone, was the newly composed ‘Ode To Love’ (Ood armastusele). Our music copies only had the Male section, so it was only at the rehearsal that we realised that there is indeed an earlier part for Solo soprano, and Female chorus. The first shock had been to be joined on stage by 3300 ladies; then there was a pregnant pause broken by the solo voice with a simple canon; very slowly and quietly all the women’s voice began to whisper below and around her, and progressively more assertive, blending in a surging outpouring of flowing chords, that made the hairs stand on the back of the neck. Then the Men’s voices came in, with a rhythmic tune, where the pauses and breaks are an integral part of the tune with the notes, like a painting where the blank sections of the canvas are also integral to the composition.

‘Our love is like a double star; we are two, but Eternally joined together’

The atmosphere was electric, and at the end of our time on stage, I unilaterally made a decision for us all – we were not going to stop with the job half done – We would be on stage for the massed choir finale at the end. O.K. at times we struggled to sing along; but there is a technique that every choir person knows, called the nanosecond trick, where you sing a fraction of a second behind the people around you

BUT WHAT AN EXPERIENCE !

The atmosphere was warmer and warmer from the emotion around us. We wriggled to see the conductor through a sea of Estonian flags; the Mexican waves that surged from the back of the stage to the back of the arena and returning made us feel bound together in one huge entity, that was all-embracing, uplifting, and supportive of all. Sometimes, other people’s national feelings can be aggressive and excluding – but not here, we felt we were swept up and embraced by it, and felt immensely privileged to be befriended by these people, and to share their joy of independence, mutual respect, Love, and national pride.

Before we ever went to Estonia, we read in guide books, that the Estonian people can be quite reserved, and slow to make acquaintances; that friendship for them is precious and protected. This could not be further from our experience. We have found the Estonian people to be among the friendliest we have ever met, and keen to share their lives, joys and enthusiasms with us, as foreigners. More than half our party were offered hospitality in people’s homes, which of course, made it a richer experience for all. ..but the warmth was demonstrable in the streets, and in fellow singers, who wanted us to enjoy the things which were significant and central to them and their lives.

Michael Akehurst