Gustav Ernesaks (12 December 1908 – 24 January 1993) was an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n composer and a choir conductor.Teletutvus: Gustav Ernesaks
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Biography

Ernesaks was born in

Perila Perila is a village in Raasiku Parish, Harju County in northern Estonia. Composer and choir conductor Gustav Ernesaks Gustav Ernesaks (12 December 1908 – 24 January 1993) was an Estonian composer and a choir conducting, conductor. Biogr ...

, Peningi Parish. He played an integral role in the

Singing Revolution The Singing Revolution; lv, dziesmotā revolūcija; lt, dainuojanti revoliucija) was a series of events that led to the restoration of independence of the Baltic nations of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania from the Soviet Union at the end of ...

and was one of the father figures of the

Estonian Song Festival The Estonian Song Festival (in Estonian: ''laulupidu'', ) is one of the largest choral events in the world, a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. It is held every five years in July on the Tallinn Song Festival G ...

tradition. One of his songs, a setting of

Lydia Koidula Lydia Emilie Florentine Jannsen, ( – ), known by her pen name Lydia Koidula, was an Estonian poet. Her sobriquet means 'Lydia of the Dawn' in Estonian. It was given to her by the writer Carl Robert Jakobson. She is also frequently referred to ...

's poem ''

Mu isamaa on minu arm "Mu isamaa on minu arm" ("My Fatherland is My Love") is an Estonian poem by Lydia Koidula. The poem was first set to music for the first Estonian Song Festival in 1869 by Aleksander Kunileid. "Mu isamaa on minu arm" became a very popular patrioti ...

'', became an unofficial

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

during the years of Estonian SSR. His performance of the song at the XVII Estonian Song Festival was one of the inspirations for Dmitri Shostakovich's 1970 a capella choral cycle, '' Loyalty''. He dedicated the score to Ernesaks, who also premiered it in Tallinn. He also composed the Estonian SSR anthem used between 1945 and 1990. In 1935, Ernesaks married Stella Merjam. They had three sons: Ott Ernesaks, Jüri Ernesaks and Peep Ernesaks. Stella died in 1973. Ernesaks died in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju '' ...

, aged 84. A statue of him was erected in 2004 on the

Tallinn Song Festival Grounds The Tallinn Song Festival Grounds ( et, Lauluväljak) are the grounds on which the Estonian Song Festival is held every five years. History of song festivals In 1869 Johann Voldemar Jannsen established the Estonian Song Festival while the na ...

Honours and awards

;Soviet Union * Hero of Socialist Labour (1974) * People's Artist of the USSR (1956) * Stalin Prizes; **2nd class (1947) **3rd class (1951) – for the opera ''Tormide rand'' ("The Coast of Storms"; 1949) * Lenin Prize (1970) *

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

, three times (1974, 1951, 1967) *

Order of the October Revolution The Order of the October Revolution (russian: Орден Октябрьской Революции, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferr ...

(1978) *

Order of the Red Banner of Labour The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (russian: Орден Трудового Красного Знамени, translit=Orden Trudovogo Krasnogo Znameni) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to th ...

(1946) *

Order of the Badge of Honour The Order of the Badge of Honour (russian: орден «Знак Почёта», orden "Znak Pochyota") was a civilian award of the Soviet Union. It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding ...

, twice (1965, 1988) ;Estonia *

Order of the Estonian Red Cross The Order of the Estonian Red Cross ( et, Eesti Punase Risti teenetemärk; french: Ordre de la Croix-Rouge Estonienne) was instituted in 1920 by the Estonian Red Cross Society. The Order of the Estonian Red Cross is bestowed in order to give rec ...

, 5th class (1938) * Honoured Artist of the Estonian SSR (1942) *

People's Artist of the Estonian SSR People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. Nomenclature and significan ...

(1947) * State Prize of the Estonian SSR (1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1959, 1965)

References

1908 births 1993 deaths People from Raasiku Parish People from Kreis Harrien Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1955–1959 Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1959–1963 Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1963–1967 Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1967–1971 Soviet composers Soviet male composers 20th-century classical composers Estonian choral conductors Estonian opera composers Soviet opera composers Male classical composers National anthem writers 20th-century Estonian composers 20th-century male musicians 20th-century conductors (music) Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre alumni Academic staff of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre People's Artists of the USSR People's Artists of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic Heroes of Socialist Labour Stalin Prize winners Lenin Prize winners Recipients of the Order of Lenin Burials at Metsakalmistu {{estonia-composer-stub