Annual List of Works: Estonian Music Centre
Title
Jusquez au printemps
Composer
Toivo Tulev (b. 1958)
Nationality
Estonian
Address
Orasheina tee 75, 74117, Maardu, Estonia. toivo_tulev@hotmail.com
Genre
choral song
Instrumentation
SATB
Year of composition
2005
Duration
10’20’’
Place of premiere performance
St. John’s Church, Tartu, Estonia
Date of premiere performance
2006-02-25
Performers
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, conductor Paul Hillier
Score
Publisher (+ Address) not published
recording
Record company: (+ Address) concert recording is made by Estonian Radio
URL: www.er.ee
Programme note
Jusquez au printemps was written in dark autumn and winter nights in 2004 and 2005. Most of the text used in this piece came from the chansons Milles regretz and Adieu mes amours by Josquin de Prez. A short verbal supplement dislocating the initial idea of the poems was added in the course of composing.
Milles regretz
de vous habandonner,
Et d´eslonger vostre fache amoureuse
J´ay si grand deuil
et paine douloureuse
Qu´on me vera
brief mes jours definer.
Adieu mes amours,
A dieu vous commend.
Adieu je vous dy jusquez au printemps,
Jusquez au-delà.
Composer Biography
Toivo Tulev (b. 1958) is inclined to musically conjoin the expressionistic and the religious. His compositions represent a constant existential struggle between tension and equilibrium. Tulev’s musical idiom has been influenced by his active participation in several early music vocal ensembles and by deep interest in Gregorian chant.
Tulev’s compositions – written prevalently for orchestra or for various ensemble line-ups – have been always remarkable for their peculiar, mesmerising atmosphere created by temporal, spatial and sound effects.
Into his recent works exotic flavours have been introduced through Eastern timbres and melody-design.
On graduating from the Tallinn Conservatoire in composition under Prof. Eino Tamberg in 1990, Toivo Tulev furthered his training with Sven-David Sandström in Stockholm (1991), studied electro-acoustic music at the Cologne Hochschule der Musik (1996) and undertook a post-graduate course at the Estonian Academy of Music (1995–1998).
Toivo Tulev has taught music theory, Gregorian chant and composition at the Tallinn Georg Ots Music High School. He worked as a singer of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir (1981–1988) and sung in various vocal ensembles like Vox Clamantis, Choeur Gregorien de Paris and Heinavanker. He is the founder (1995) and artistic director of the liturgical music ensemble Scandicus. Toivo Tulev was appointed Composer-in-Residence at the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir for the season 2004/2005.
At the present he is a lecturer of composition (since 2001) and head of the composition department (since 2005) at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and is going to obtain the doctor’s degree.
Tulev’s music has been performed in many Scandinavian and European countries. Two of his works, Opus 21 for chamber orchestra (1996) and Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (2002), were selected among the best ten compositions at the International Rostrum of Composers in Paris. Opus 21 was also performed at the Tokyo new music festival Composium 1998 dedicated to Toru Takemitsu. His work Hommage to the Setting Sun for chamber ensemble (1993) was written for the Sydney Spring Festival, Quella Sera for chamber orchestra (1996) for the London Baltic Arts Festival, Don’t Call Him Too Early (2002) for the Gaida Festival in Vilnius and Dutch Nieuw Ensemble. Be lost in the Call, commissioned by the Berlin MaerzMusik Festival, premiered at the Chamber Hall of the Berlin Philharmonic, March 2003. Swing low, premiered in Tallinn at the international contemporary music festival NYYD 2003, was also performed at the Warsaw Autumn Festival 2004.
Tulev’s short ballet Cruz, inspired by poetry of Spanish mystical philosopher John of the Cross, was staged at the Estonian National Opera in 2002.
Twice, for 2001 and 2003, Toivo Tulev has been awarded the Annual Prize of the Endowment for Music of the Cultural Endowment of Estonia. In 2002, he received Cultural Endowment’s Live and Shine grant and in 2006 was awarded the Annual Music Prize of the Estonian Music Council.
© EMIC