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Music written by Estonian composers has found admirers all over the world. Since 1979, the Estonian Composers’ Union has organized the festival Estonian Music Days (EMD), the visiting card of contemporary Estonian music.  An abundant amount of new commissions each year has made it the most established festival focusing on Estonian contemporary music.

The artistic directors of the festival are internationally renowned Estonian composers Helena Tulve and Timo Steiner. Composer Märt-Matis Lill is the artistic director of the Tartu programme. Helena Tulve explains the nature of the festival: “The festival’s programme gives an overview of the current state of Estonian music. The entire festival is a surprise. As most pieces have been written especially for the festival, we don’t know what to expect and the best idea is to be open to the unexpected.”

Back in 1979, legendary Estonian composer Eino Tamberg commented on the first festival to journalists:

“In my opinion, the festival serves two objectives. Firstly, we wish to give an overview of Estonian music to our audience and guests. Their participation certainly contributes to distributing our music in case they find some of it interesting. Secondly, when we have listened to our music in so many performances, that it helps us to shape a better overview, what kind of positive sides our oeuvre has and where we have gaps. It is nice that the festival has also included music from previous periods, for example, top works that have been undeservedly and seldomly performed. … At the same time, these works can be considered as comparison material for evaluating contemporary music. Planning the festival so extensively shows that we probably do have something to share in that kind of capacity.”

The festival originated in the stagnant atmosphere of the late 1970s, a time when the pressure of Russification was intensifying, and many leading cultural figures chose to leave the Soviet Union. At the Estonian Composers’ Union (then chaired by Jaan Rääts), it was considered important to provide a platform for Estonian composers and to organize a festival where new music could be performed, listened to, and discussed. The main inspiration was the “Warsaw Autumn” festival, where many had first encountered avant-garde music. Interestingly, there was no other festival in the Soviet Union dedicated solely to contemporary national music—making Estonian Music Days a unique exception. From the very beginning, the festival has prioritized showcasing fresh works by composers active at that particular moment.

Although during Soviet times the festival was held under various names (Soviet Estonian Music Festival in 1979, Tallinn Music Festival in 1981, again Soviet Estonian Music Festival in 1984, Three Evenings with Estonian Music in 1986 [before the 7th Congress of the Composers’ Union of the USSR], and Estonian Music Festival), the goal remained the same: to highlight the work of local composers. Since 1991, the event has been known as Estonian Music Days, and from 1993 onward, not a single spring has been missed. Today, Estonian Music Days is the longest-running music festival still active in Estonia.

While the festival has always been presented in close collaboration with various music institutions and top performers, the conceptual ideas have largely come from the Estonian Composers’ Union (though the Estonian Music Information Centre also played a significant role in its organization for some time). The festival’s artistic directors have included Raimo Kangro, Mare Põldmäe, Timo Steiner (from 2002 to the present), Ülo Krigul (2004–2014), and Helena Tulve (since 2015).

About the very first festival, composer Eino Tamberg told the press:

“In my opinion, the festival serves two purposes. First, we want to give an overview of Estonian music to both our own audience and to the guests attending the festival. Their participation will certainly help our music to spread—if they find something that interests them. Second, after hearing so many live performances of our own music, we ourselves will gain a clearer picture of the strengths of our work and where the gaps still lie. It’s great that the program includes works from earlier periods as well—such as top pieces that are unjustly rarely performed. At the same time, those works serve as comparison material when evaluating new compositions. The fact that the festival is planned on such a large scale shows that we clearly have enough to present at this level.”

In 2019, the 40th anniversary of Estonian Music Days was celebrated in grand fashion as an international contemporary music festival, held in conjunction with the World Music Days – the annual festival of the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM), which takes place in a different corner of the world each year. The theme of the 2019 festival was “Through the Forest of Songs”, and the artistic directors were Märt-Matis Lill and Timo Steiner.

At the festival, at least one piece from every ISCM member country was performed, along with a wealth of music by Estonian composers – including both premieres and reperformances. Estonian ensembles had a unique opportunity to perform on home ground for an exceptionally knowledgeable international audience, while also discovering new music from lesser-known cultural regions. Several ensembles from neighboring countries also took part.

The festival was accompanied by nearly 250 international delegates, including 80 composers from abroad. In total, more than 170 works were performed, around 20 of which were world premieres.

In 2016, the festival featured 60 new works.

In 2021, the Estonian Composers’ Union, in collaboration with the Latvian and Lithuanian Composers’ Unions, launched a new touring festival called the Baltic Music Days as part of the Baltic Contemporary Music Network. The new festival was initiated with the aim of developing a professional network for Baltic contemporary music and introducing the public to the diverse and artistically high-level music being created in the region. The festival rotates annually, taking place each year in a different Baltic country.

The first edition of the festival was held online in Estonia, due to the global pandemic. In 2022, the festival took place in Kaunas, Lithuania, and in 2023 in Cēsis, Latvia. In 2024, the festival returned to Estonia – this time as part of the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024 program. In 2025, the Baltic Music Days will be held in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania.

Each host country collaborates with an already existing festival – in Estonia’s case, the Estonian Music Days serves as the host. In addition, the Baltic Contemporary Music Network works actively to promote Baltic composers, professional ensembles, and performers beyond the region.

More information about the activities of the Baltic Contemporary Music Network can be found here.

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