At the worldwide Tormis 95 choral competition celebrating the 95th anniversary of Veljo Tormis, "The Dream of Tabu Tabu", created in collaboration with Baltic Sea Philharmonic and conducted by Kristjan Järvi, received third prize and was recognized as an ambitious international project promoting Estonian culture on a global scale.

"The Dream of Tabu-Tabu" was born from a question conductor Kristjan Järvi asked the composer: “Could you write something very Estonian for the orchestra?”

Together, they discussed the possibility of orchestrating a work by Estonian choral music giant Veljo Tormis. This reminded the composer of Tormis’ 1981 piece for male choir featuring the words “tabu-tabu.”

In Soviet-era Estonia, these words carried a powerful underlying meaning. The audience understood the message, as many subjects could not be openly discussed at the time. In her work, the composer uses a quotation from Tormis’ original piece "An Aboriginal Song".

An important element of the composition became the shaman drum. Since Veljo Tormis also used a shaman drum alongside the choir in the original work, the idea emerged to combine the instrument with a symphony orchestra. Kristjan Järvi was given the shaman drum to play while conducting, and it eventually became one of the work’s most recognizable features.

Liis Jürgens describes herself both as an orchestral harpist and a composer. Years of playing in orchestras have given her the opportunity to closely observe orchestral dynamics, orchestration styles, and the interaction between musicians.

“The harp is sometimes a quiet instrument in the orchestra, and that has given me the chance to listen carefully and observe everything happening around me,” she says.

She was also inspired by the idea of giving percussionists the opportunity to use the full range of their expressive possibilities and build a growing improvisational climax.

In addition to orchestral experience, the composer has also been a choral singer, which made Tabu Tabu familiar to her long before composing the piece. According to her, all her different musical and creative sides come together in this work.

As a composer, she considers the ability to create an entirely separate world to be the most important aspect of composition. One with its own rules and inner logic.

“A great deal of my inspiration simply comes from a love of sound,” she explains. Improvisation, nature, people, and everyday life all serve as sources of inspiration. For Jürgens, it is important that music reaches audiences and creates a connection between performers and listeners.

Performing from memory is also important to her, as it allows musicians to be freer and more emotionally open on stage. According to the composer, this approach resembles theater production, where performers do not merely read notes but truly live through the music.

To young composers, she offers simple advice: begin. “Small steps lead to dreams. You simply have to follow your star and start acting.”

The title "The Dream of Tabu-Tabu" refers to the dreamlike and poetic atmosphere around which the composition was built. “Our everyday reality is actually quite dreamlike,” the composer says.

This article is partially based on an interview with composer Liis Jürgens conducted by Katharina Wickeli on August 25, 2023.

Photo: Peter Adamik

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"The Dream of Tabu-Tabu" (2022)
Jew’s harp, shaman drum and symphony orchestra

World premiere: Baltic Sea Philharmonic, conducted by Kristjan Järvi; March 23, 2022, Koningin Elisabethzaal, Antwerp, Belgium
Estonian premiere: Baltic Sea Philharmonic, conducted by Kristjan Järvi; August 12, 2022, Birgitta Festival, Pirita Convent Ruins

Watch the performance video featured in the Tormis 95 Singing Contest [HERE](https://youtu.be/-9PGuPVfhw0?si=sshYYHNLQwWaqbG2

More info about the Tormis 95 Singing Contest is avaliable HERE.