The Two Month Mark

It has now been two months since I arrived in Estonia. Well okay, two months and two days, but who’s counting. I can’t believe it. Time seems to move so quickly here. My roommate and I have this recurring conversation every few days it goes something like this:

Hende: “Is today the 25th?”
Me: “No, it’s the 27th. Woah.”
Hende: “I can’t believe it’s the weekend again.”
Me: “I know, wasn’t it JUST the weekend?!”
Hende: “Oh here we go having this conversation again…”
Me: “Hende! It’s almost November.”
Hende: “And then it’ll be Decemeber, and then Christmas, and then I’ll be back in Finland.”
Me: “How is this possible, what is happening to our time in Estonia?!”

Anyway, you get the idea. I probably shouldn’t think about it so much. I think we feel this way because we are both so busy, but we are busy with really interesting and new things. I certainly haven’t felt bored in quite some time. Let me tell about some of the exciting things I have been up to.

I love living in Viljandi. It is small, cute, and charming, and there is always some cool cultural event going on. For instance, every month (I think) there is a Tantsumaja (Dance House) at the Ait. People come together to dance to live folk music. It seems like knowing the different folk dances is a requirement here. It is really cool to see all types of people, young and old moving their feet to this kind of music. If I went to a similar event in the States (and I have done so occasionally) I would probably be the only “young person” there. I also love that almost any event with music is a good enough reason to dance. They start off by teaching a dance and talking through some things, then later in the night they just play music and everyone dances freely. If you know me at all, then you know that I am one of the least coordinated people on the face of the planet. Graceful is definitely not my middle name. I frequently trip over my own toes, walk into walls, and fall over when simply standing in one place. Needless to say, I am not the best dancer, but I do enjoy it. I am very grateful for the patience of the people who dance with me at these events (especially my friend Liisa who says there is hope yet for me). They continue to drag me around the floor, help me learn these dances, and don’t seem to be offended when I bump into people.

Photo by: Pärimusmuusika Ait

Let’s see, what else have I been up to…? One weekend I took a trip to Riga, Latvia and spent some time with my “Fulbright family”. I love that I can just go to another country for the weekend; it’s a concept that still blows my mind a little. Anyway, in Latvia this year there are four Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) and Research grant recipients. Bart, the other Estonian Fulbrighter and I, got to know them back in the States during our orientation in DC. We decided then that we would try to get together during our Fulbright year and do fun things or travel. The six of us had a fun weekend walking around Riga, exploring the central market, grabbing a few drinks at the Folk Pub, and visiting the Open-Air Museum. It rained all weekend so I didn’t get to walk around the city quite as much as I would have liked, but that just means I have to go back! It was really great to spend time with the Latvian Fulbrighters and get to know them better. I can’t wait for them to come visit Estonia!

The handmade mug I got at the Open-Air Museum

Photo by: my friend Dan

The following weekend three American girls, who I met during orientation in Tartu, came to visit me in Viljandi. It was fun to show them around. After I picked them up at the bus station and we got a bite to eat, we walked around the castle ruins (of course). Then we went up into the Old Water Tower and looked out over Viljandi. I am glad we did because I think it is now closed because tourist season is over. There may not be a whole lot to see in Viljandi (although I have still yet to go to the Viljandi Museum or the Kondase Keskus art museum…gasp), but it was nice to just walk around and talk. I think my friends appreciated the change of scenery.

The next weekend Bart and I went on a trip with the US Embassy to a the Lindi Nature Reserve in Pärnu County. I took a bus to Pärnu and met the rest of the group who had driven from Tallinn together. From the bus station we headed to the bog. We strapped on our bog shoes and then took off to explore one of Estonia’s beautiful natural landscapes. It was fun to feel the spongey ground bounce beneath us. I only fell once…because I decided it would be a good idea to skip in bog shoes. We walked through a little forest island where our guide showed us how to easily start a fire and mentioned some survival skills. At the end of our walk through the bog we all sat together in this little wooden hut and enjoyed a hot meal that our guide prepared for us. It was really tasty and much appreciated after our long walk.

Photo by: my friend Bart

From the embassy newsletter, “The Medieval Times”

When our time at the bog was over instead of heading back to Viljandi like I had planned, I decided to head back to spend the night in Tallinn. That night Bart and I met up with my Estonian teacher for dinner and then did a little bar-hopping. It was a lot of fun and we met two of my teacher’s friends who were really funny. I laughed harder than I have in a long time. They work at a radio station in Tallinn and asked me to perform at a charity show they put on. Unfortunately I had a conflict for this particular event, but I hope that in the future I can get my band to go to Tallinn and play with me. The next morning Bart had plans to go to Tartu, so again I tagged along. We spent the day with the Tuula, the girl I had stayed with when I was in Tartu for orientation. By the end of the weekend I had pretty much made a circle around the country.

During my two months in Estonia I have learned to say “yes” more and to be comfortable with the unexpected. I don’t always know what my plans are or where I am supposed to be, but when I just go with the flow, I end up having these awesome experiences. I can’t wait to see where the next two months bring me!

A Quick Look Back

Take care of all your memories. For you cannot relive them.
-Bob Dylan

I think it has already been established that I am not the most consistent blogger. In fact I think you could call me a “binge blogger”. I go weeks without posting and then to make up for it I write a lot all at once about all the things that happened during those weeks. My justification for this is that living life is what gives me something interesting to write about in the first place. The way the last two months have gone, I haven’t had much time to slow down and reflect. Anyway, I hope you can forgive me for jumping back to the beginning of September for a moment.

I have told you about the first day of school here in Viljandi, but I never mentioned what happened in the following week…admittedly not much. You see, I didn’t have class for about a week and a half after that. In fact I had so much time on my hands that after exploring Viljandi and getting to know where pretty much everything is (it’s Estonia, it’s small) I didn’t know what to do with myself. Looking back, it is crazy to think I had so little going on. I don’t think that will happen again until I leave Estonia. Once things got started, they didn’t stop.

Anyway, the lack of class at the beginning of the school year was definitely an adjustment for me. It turns out (as I later found out), that the first week of school is mostly devoted to information sessions for the freshmen. That first week of school I did go to one “pidu” or party. I put pidu in quotes because it seems to be a very popular word here. Lots of things are parties…things that I would more likely describe as a meeting, festival, or concert. This particular “pidu” was actually more of an opening meeting for the music department. It took place in the Pärimusmuusika Ait (Folk Music Center), a building that I was fascinated by and have since gotten to know quite well. The building is a mix of old architecture with lots of cool looking brick, and super modern design with sleek glass. This night the pidu took place downstairs (which I believe is mostly underground) in a room with brick walls and an arched ceiling.

We all (there were about 10-15 of us) sat on couches or on the floor and went around introducing ourselves. When it was my turn I said what I could in Estonian about who I am and why I am here. One of the teachers (who I now know to be quite funny based on the number of laughs he gets during class) quickly rattled off something in Estonian, to which I responded with a confused look and a “…something about speaking Estonian?” in English. Clearly he just wanted to confirm that I only spoke very little Estonian.

After the introductions were done and the teachers gave what I assume was some important information, someone took the new students on a little tour of the building. During the tour (they kindly spoke English) we were told that if we are practicing or rehearsing downstairs for a long time and start to feel tired and groggy it is probably due to the lack of oxygen. However, rather that opening the small basement-like windows, because they are difficult to get closed again, we should turn on this machine that circulates some fresh air into the room. After seeing the different halls, walking around backstage, and seeing the little music library, the first-year students and I returned to the room where a jam session was already underway. I joined in and tried to learn some new tunes by ear. I want to mention another difference between university in Estonia and college back in the States. Throughout this party/meeting a few teachers and students were drinking beers that they had brought down from the bar upstairs. This is something that would never happen at a school-related event in the US, probably because of the difference in drinking ages (21 in the US, but 18 in Estonia).

Another pidu I went to at the beginning of September was the “Hooaja avapidu” or the season opening party at the Pärimusmuusika Ait. It is funny that when I was back home and had contacted the Ait to see how I could get involved, I was told I would probably be spending a lot of time there while I was in Viljandi. At the time I had no idea how true that was. This opening “party” was a concert to kickoff the new season of events at the Ait. There were three different performances and all were super cool in their own way.

Here is a very rough translation (please excuse the many mistakes) of the three performances:

The Viljandi Folk Music Autumn season begins!

The Traditional Music Autumn season begins 13 September, with SILVER SEPP, I FRATELLI TARZANELLI and CURLY STRINGS.

Silver Sepp “Mis asi see on?” (What is this thing?)

What is this thing that starts to sing, if I stay all alone…? asks Silver Sepp on his solo album. Estonian traditional musician Silver, with his homemade fantasy instruments is a troubadour wandering alone, who does not use traveled paths, but creates new paths, using washing basins, bicycle spokes, forks, and his own voice, which tells the stories of great longing, peace of mind, normal wear and tear, blooms at home reached and revolution. At the Ait’s concert hall this Autumn is the season’s opening concert of Silver’s first full-length solo.

Silver Sepp lives close enough to the Arctic Circle to create wistful, meditative landscapes of sound, yet comes from a fishing village on the southernmost coast of Estonia, where the minor key has been avoided for centuries. Silver finds most of his songs and tunes in the imaginative instruments he has created himself. He has reinvented the bicycle wheel and has given all sorts of everyday clutter new resonance. In concert he transforms the bicycle wheel into a percussion as well as melodic instrument in its own right. His water drum set, requiring 20 liters of water, was found in the sauna at his home farm, yet to date has featured in over fifty concerts of the band RO:TORO in Great Britain alone. The sound of his nail instrument, visually reminiscent of a sea mine, has been said to sound more beautiful than a cello. Not without reason was he one of the most popular performers at the 2011 Eesti Kontsert school concerts. On the one hand Silver is a troubadour accompanying himself on the guitar, on the other an extraordinary fantasist.

I fratelli Tarnzanelli

I fratelli Tarzanelli is a duo consisting of Baltazar Montanaro (violin) and Pablo Golder (diatonic accordion). They met in 2007 in France, and since then have been good friends in life and on stage. They dance to the music played in many parts of Europe, and now they are coming to Estonia. Viljandi Folk Music the granary of the new season opened heaven to raise the mood of the listeners. The duo has appeared on one CD entitled “Palomino”.

Curly Strings

Four good friends with unique personalities (Eeva Talsi, Villu Talsi, Jalmar Vabarna, Taavet Niller), who have been playing together in various projects for years, have joined forces and created their dream band. The quartet draws inspiration from everywhere without creative boundaries. One of the band’s peculiarities is its instrumentation (mandolin, violin, guitar, and doublebass). It is remarkable what they can do with these “limited” possibilities. Their first hit “Üle ilma”, written by the ensemble’s violinist Eeva Talsi, like wildfire has already conquered their homeland, and their second single “Maailm heliseb” also has a music video. Their self-recorded songs are mainly merry dance songs, which attract both young and old!

Silver Sepp was a really interesting and unique performance and I also really enjoyed I fratelli Tarzenelli. However, I was especially excited to hear Curly Strings. They are one of my favorite Estonian groups. I discovered them this summer when I was home searching for Estonian music to listen to. I really, really like their sound and the type of music they play. I hope they will record a CD soon. It was awesome that I had been listening to this band all summer and then I got to hear them live. I have since seen each of the musicians perform in various other groupings and even have even gotten to jam with them.

I definitely encourage you to check out all the musicians mentioned in this post! A quick You-Tube search should suffice.

Photo by: Ülar Mändmets

Teadmiste Päev (Day of Knowledge)

Okay, so technically Teadmiste Päev (the Estonian holiday for the first day of school) was yesterday, September 1st, but because yesterday was a Sunday the school year started today. I have been waiting for this day for a very long time. I am finally a student at the Viljandi Culture Academy!

Today was definitely the most unique first day of school I have ever had. Actually there aren’t any classes this week at all. After waking up early for breakfast at the guest house and then having a lazy morning in my room I ventured off to find the coffee place I had heard about. It’s called “Rohelise Maja” and when I was in DC for my Fulbright orientation a returning Fulbright Scholar told me it had the best coffee in Viljandi. In fact he gave me his stamp card that already had two stamps on it! Well, now it has three. I got a latte and had their tomato, carrot, and lentil soup. It was very good. I finished up my little lunch just in time to head to the Folk Music Center (Pärimusmuusika Ait) for the opening ceremony.

I took my seat in the hall and looked around while friends greeted each other and chatted. Then there was what sounded like a dull gong and I was amazed at how quickly everyone quieted down. I am sure if the hall was full of Americans it would have taken much longer for people to finish their conversations and realize the ceremony was about to begin. Then everyone stood up, so I did too. Someone started singing and everyone joined in. It was the Estonian National Anthem (Eesti Hümn) and it was beautiful. Everyone was so together and Estonians really do have beautiful voices. Hearing it made me light up. After the anthem was over someone in the audience started a call and response song similar to ones I have heard over the past year. Although I had no idea what was being sung, I joined in when I could.

At this point we all sat down and then the talking began. Several people gave little speeches and I think some sort of award was presented to someone, but I really couldn’t tell you. Honestly, I caught a few words here and there, but for the most part I had no idea what was going on. I clapped when everyone else did and smiled when the room laughed at a joke I didn’t understand. In between some of the talking a guitarist and vocalist got up and sang a song in English. I enjoyed it very much and remember thinking, “Now this is a language I can understand” (music I mean…not the English). These two also performed at the end of the ceremony, but this time in Estonian.

When the people who I assume were important in someway were done with their welcome speeches they started to call groups of students up to the stage. When this happened I started to get nervous. I turned to the woman sitting next to me and asked if they were calling new students by department. We had a difficult time understanding each other, but after a while she confirmed that was what was happening. I told her I was a music student and asked if I should go up as well. When they called pärimusmuusika I looked at her and she nodded. So I walked up and joined five or six other students on the stage. Each name was called and they went to shake hands and receive a welcome bag. As each name was called I hoped mine would be next. They didn’t call my name and I was left standing there awkwardly, feeling under-dressed, wishing I had stayed in my seat, and feeling the eyes of a room full of people wondering who I was. Ultimately I walked back to me seat bag-less and without a handshake. My tutor, Kaisa, later made me feel better saying that someone is left standing awkwardly on the stage almost every year.

When the ceremony concluded I went and stood in the hallway for a bit not knowing what to do. Then I decided to go talk to someone who looked like they might be some sort of authority figure. She was a teacher of native crafts and graciously called someone to find out what to do with me. I then hopped in her car and she drove me to the music building, where she walked me in and handed me off to some people there. After some quick introductions they told me to come back later for my scheduled meeting with the head of the music department. I had just enough time to walk back to the guest house, dig out my rain jacket from my suitcase, and then head back.

After a few more awkward interactions I was very happy to meet the person that was going to help me pick classes. Basically I am going to take a bunch of practical classes because lectures would be super challenging and frustrating for me. There are so many great classes that are perfect for my interest in ethnomusicology that I would not be able to take in the States, but maybe I can try to take one or two in the spring when my language skills have improved. I also finally found out who my fiddle teacher will be. I am really excited because it turns out I will be studying with Maarja Nuut, the same woman who was one of the first Estonian musicians I discovered over a year ago during my many YouTube searches for Estonian fiddle music. I have not met her yet, but I think I will like her. It is still a little surreal that because Viljandi, and all of Estonia, is so small I will probably end up meeting many of the people I have heard about and listened to for the past year.

While my classes may change if any scheduling problems arrive, let me give you a quick list of the classes I will be taking: fiddle lesson, piano, kannel (see Estonian Traditional Music Center), theory, transcribing, practical harmony, voice training, improvisation, rhythmics…in addition I will be part of two separate bands. There is also a “class” which involves going to some woman’s house in the countryside for three days and exploring the local culture. Now if that isn’t hands-on education and real-life application I don’t know what is.

Here are some pictures I took yesterday when I had nothing better to do than walk around and get lost…

The balcony of my room at the guest house

View from the balcony

Little waterfall in the park between the guest house and school

Lake Viljandi

Viljandi Castle Ruins

Viljandi Suspension Bridge

Folk Music Center

Estonian swing

The famous Viljandi strawberries!

Estonian Traditional Music Center

Photos by: www.folk.ee

My Fulbright project is about folk music and the impact that traditional music has on the culture of Estonia. However, it is also about education in Estonia and how folk music is taught. Part of my plans were to be involved at the Estonian Traditional Music Center that is located in Viljandi.

Estonian Traditional Music Center is a countrywide, independent, open, and innovative non-profit association which promotes and organizes folk music hobby education, promotes live folk music, follows the folk music curriculum of the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy, and operates as a partner and an information center for all the Estonian music schools, associations, folk bands, folk groups, solo artists, and folk music enthusiasts.
Since spring 2008, Estonian Traditional Music Centre is located in the renovated storehouse in the Viljandi Castle Hills. Estonian Traditional Music Centre also launched the non-formal educational centre August Pulst School and opened the Traditional Music Centre Library.

Although I have been talking about it for a while, I had not actually heard back from the people there until this week. Yesterday I received an email from the Head of the August Pulst School and the Head of Studies saying that I would be “most welcome”. This is really important to my project because it will allow me to observe and participate in courses so that I can see first hand how folk music is taught in the community. I may also have the opportunity to learn two different traditional Estonian instruments: the talharpa and the kannel.

The talharpa is a four-stringed bowed lyre or bowed harp that has tuning similar to a fiddle. The instrument is played with an arrow-shaped bow and is held on or between the knees. It has a rectangular body and the strings are made of horsehair of sheep intestines. The talharpa probably came to Estonia in the 13th and 14th centuries, brought by the Swedes who settled in the islands and coastal areas.

The kannel is the oldest traditional Estonian instrument. It has supposedly been around for approximately two thousand years. This type of instrument is common in Baltic Finn and northwestern Russian cultures. There are four kinds of kannel: small kannel, modern kannel, harmony kannel, and chromatic kannel. It is most likely that I would be learning the small kannel (or zither), so I will tell you about that. It is a shaped like a trapezoid and hollowed out of one plank of wood. It is often made of fir, but can also be pine, linden, or birch. The small kannel has only six or seven strings made of horse hair, sheep intestines, or wire.

It’s Official!

I am finishing up my student teaching right now in Norwalk, CT and after a long day at school I decided to meet up with a friend for dinner. While waiting for our meals at “The Ginger Man,” my friend got up to use the bathroom. Instead of awkwardly looking around the room waiting for him to return, I checked my email on my iPhone. My eyes jumped immediately to the email I have been obsessively searching for over the past two months. I have been selected for a Fulbright U.S. Student award for 2013-2014 to Estonia! I can’t believe I got it! I am so excited. It has been seven months since I submitted the application back in October. I worked all summer on getting it just right, and I have been thinking about a potential Fulbright Scholarship as far back as freshman year. For the last several months I have been getting a mixture of reassurance that my chances were looking good and, “Don’t count your chickens…” warnings to not get my hopes up. I am so happy that this waiting game is done.

So what does this mean exactly? It means I will be living, studying, and conducting research in Estonia next year for about nine months. My plan is to study Estonian folk music and education at Viljandi Culture Academy at the University of Tartu. I’ll also be learning how to play Estonian fiddle music. I’ll be sharing more details with you about what I have in mind, but for now that is the basic idea.

If you have spent any considerable amount of time with me in the last couple of months, you know that I can’t stop talking about Estonia and Fulbright. I think I’ve been driving my family crazy and they are ready for a new topic of conversation. A lot of my spare time lately has been spent surfing the web for information about Estonia and stories from past Fulbright grantees. During that time I also decided that if I got a Fulbright, I would start a blog to document my experience. Writing is neither one of my strengths nor my favorite thing to do, but I think this is just the motivation I need. I will use this blog to share what I am doing while I am abroad with family and friends. It will also be good for me to be able to look back on my trip and remember the things I’ve seen and learned. So rather than procrastinate (as is my tendency), I figured there is no better day to start this blog than today. Although I will not leave for Estonia for another few months, I will blog about my plans and what I am doing to prepare for my time in Viljandi.

The first thing I am doing is attending the Summer Language Institute at the University of Pittsburgh to study the Estonian language. While there are a lot of English-speakers in Estonia, and learning the language is not required for my grant, I want to immerse myself in the Estonian culture as much as I can. Part of doing so is learning to speak, read, and write in Estonian. A few weeks ago I was accepted to the program and found out that I would be receiving a scholarship. Just this week I confirmed my housing arrangements and ordered my textbooks. I am really looking forward to spending six weeks learning as much as I can. It will be a great change of pace and I think Pittsburgh is a wonderful place to spend my summer.

The last thing I want to mention for today is my family. They have been so supportive throughout the application process and this period of waiting. It will be really difficult to be away from them, but I know this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I cannot wait! Thank you Mom and Tom for all your help and your love! I am really missing my dad today (he passed away on April 11th, at much too young an age). He spent a lot of time talking with me and reading my grant proposal and personal statement. I know he is proud of me and I just wish I could give him a hug and say, “We did it!” I am confident that my dad will be looking down on me wherever the next year takes me. Love you Dad!