Veljo Tormis Lauliku lapsepdli The Singer’s Childhood from the cycle “Songs About Song And The Singer” for women’s chorus and soloists A FEW WORDS FROM THE AUTHOR I was born at Kuusalu near Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, on 7 August 1930. I got the speciality of a composer from the Moscow Conservatoire (1951— 1956), having previously studied the organ, choral conducting and composi- tion in Tallinn. | have taught at the Tallinn Music School and worked in the Estonian Composers’ Union. Since 1969, I have been a freelance composer. Inthe 1960s, I dedicated myself to the closer study of folklore and the ways of using it in my music. In addition to work with literature on the subject, I asso- ciated with experts, folklorists. 1 aspired to preserve the authenticity of ancient Estonian runo song in choral settings, avoiding any arrangements or harmo- nisations after European canons. "The Singer’s Childhood” is a song from the cycle “Songs About Song And The Singer”, compiled in 1971. Its’ different parts are dedicated to my sympathizers at that time — to the folklorists Ingrid Riiitel, Ottilie Koiva and Ruth Miroy, to the poet Jaan Kaplinski and the theatre director Jaan Tooming. This is the second part of the cycle published here. Veljo Tormis Aprill 1996 he MiusikaOlli Koivale : Lauliku lapsepdli To Olli Koiva The Singer’s Childhood Veljo Tormis 7 Eesti rahvalaul (Polya) Estonian folk tune (rom Pata patsh) nel tempo Saks Kui_ma oli | vai—ko- KS - nd, Jal” le - aa, | al’- Je - aa, eruppi 7 (erppo) p(—= >) 2 — Aa s Coro A. kau = ni = ko va-n- au, | al - Ie - aa, al - le - aa, (simile) ‘The part of the I. solo group can be performed by a soloist (mezz0 soprano or alto); another group comes it at the culmination. 1,8” jne,- palatalisatsioon. Haildada umbes: o()IHi,a()leaa, ka()svi je © 1996 Kirjastus "MUUSIKA", Tallinnpi te ka 1 | pita vasn-m, fal - le - aa, als le - a, i-mavei kii- gu | ke al - le - aa, pan’ de hil 10 | pa - to pat -hal - 1G - -m-mi, | al - le - aa, al - le = aa, su - v6- lin - nu | lit - gu -ta-m-ma, | al ~ le - aa, (gruppo ad lib.) Pard-sil of’- le | pal’ fo s0-n- mu, | al - Ie - aa, al le - aa,su - vO- lin mol | tii - a? aa - Ww, oe ee eS ‘poco a poco crescendo parts ial man mol | pal to ta-u- ti, | als le - an, poco a poco crescendo su - vO - lin - du | tii = ast k6-n6-1i, $e ee a’, u' - laringaalklusiil (kOriswlghaiik) q(gruppo) Sait mi-na tars sis | tau = Iwo - koik mi-na pan ni | pa - F 5)diminuendo Koik mi-na rai - 6 al - le - aa, diminuendo diminuendo er a = aa a fa Poco meno mosso p solo Sel- le mi-nol | pal’ to so-n- mu, | al - le - aa, P sel-le faa - jolt’ laa - tu - vii - si, | al - te - aa,LAULIKU LAPSEPOLI Kui ma ol'li vaikokOnd, al'Teaa, al'leaa, kaSvi ma sis kaunikOnd, ol'li tite Gti vannu, piile kato paiva vannu, ima vei kiigu kesd pale, paide hall palo pale, pafde paédsi hilliitimma, suvolinnu liigutamma, Pafdsil ol'le pal’lo sonnu, suy@linnul lita’ laalu’, paits sail man mul pal'lo Tauli, suyolindu liiast kOnd! Séalt mina lat’s sis laulu’ ope, ullik6nd sdna” osasi, ik mina pani papdrihe, ik mina raid raamatuhe. Selle minol pal'lo sSnnu, selle lagjalt laaluviisi. KEY TO PRONUNCIATION ESTONIAN, a Balto-Finnic language, is a phonetic language ~ i.e. the same letters are used for the same sound. ‘THE SINGER'S CHILDHOOD When I was a little one, alleaa, alleaa, growing up, a fair one, only one night of age, more than two days of age, mother took my swing out to the fallow, set my cradle on the heat, got a duck to rock it, a summerbird to swing it. ‘The duck had many words, the summerbird too many songs. There the duck much sang by me, the summerbird talked too much. From there I, child, the songs then learnt, there 1, sprat, picked up the words. Everything I put down on paper, everything I carved in the books, therefore have I many words, therefore am I rich in tunes. Short vowels and consonants are written with one, long with two letters, WOWELS: a sounds like * e ns ‘e i “oY ° ¥ ‘o” u =“ ‘Ww 6 ‘u’ inthe English ‘but’ ‘pen’ is ” “dog? & ‘put’ English ‘know’ 6 " ir . ‘a’ inthe English ‘cat ” “fir : the first component of the diphthong /aw in the i 2 “Gi? in the German ‘iiber’ or ‘u’ in the french “une” In diphtongs the second vowel, different from English, is pronounced longer. CONSONANTS: ‘The sounds represented by b, p, g, k, d, t are weaker than English, ic. the release of the air after the closure is not as audible as in English. & _ is always pronounced as ‘g” in the English word ‘get” J sounds like *y’ in the English ‘yes’ x is triller formed with the tip of the tongue. ‘The other consonants are very much the same as in English. after a letter marks palatalization » stands for a laryngeal sound Compiled by Anne Alipere Publishing House Music Inc. Reimani 2-26 40124 Talinn ° ESTONIA ‘e-mait tamps@online.ce