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The Yamaha scholarship competition 2022, open to all full time woodwind students of the EAMT, will take place on Wednesday, 23 February at 10.00 in the Chamber hall of EAMT. One scholarship of 1000€ will be awarded.

The programme is following:

Flute:

• J.S. Bach – Partita A Minor BWV 1013, I Allemande & II Courante
• W.A. Mozart – Concerto G Major K313, I mvt with cadenza or Concerto D Major K314, I mvt with cadenza

Oboe:

• J.S. Bach – Partita BWV 1013, I Allemande & II Courante (transcription for oboe)
• W.A. Mozart – Concerto C Major K314 I mvt with cadenza

Clarinet:

• J.S. Bach – Partita BWV 1013, I Allemande ja II Courante (transcription for clarinet)
• W.A. Mozart – Concerto A Major K622, I mvt

Bassoon:

• J.S. Bach – Partita BWV 1013, I Allemande & II Courante (transcription for bassoon)
• W.A. Mozart – Concerto B-flat Major, I mvt with cadenza

Saxophone:

• J.S. Bach – Partita BWV 1013, I Allemande ja II Courante (transcription for saxophone)
• A. Glazunov – Concerto op 109, from the beginning till the end of the cadenza

In order to participate, please sign up latest by Tuesday, 15 February 2022 here.

The concert and theatre hall of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and the ticket sales platform Fienta have jointly developed a new ticket validation system. The goal of the project was to create a self-service solution that speeds up the entrance to the venue and reduces physical contact between individuals. At the same time, the work processes of the concert and theatre hall were reviewed and improved. The new system will be tested at the EMTA concert and theater hall in December 2021.

“While cinemas have been using self-service to check-in attendees for some time now, this is the first time such a solution is used by a concert and theatre hall,” says Ilja Goor, the Administrative Head of EAMT Halls. “We are glad that Fienta took our idea and developed a solution in which many other event organizers are already interested.”

Attendees display their ticket and medical certificate QR codes to a tablet computer as a printout or from a mobile phone. The validity of the concert or theatre ticket is checked by the system and the ticket will be marked as used. The health certificate and the identity document are double-checked by a hall attendant.

“Fienta is pleased that the Academy of Music and Theatre is so open to innovation. Self-service at the EAMT Concert and Theatre Hall makes the process of checking tickets and health certificates faster for the audience and also helps to reduce physical contacts. The solution will be available for other event organizers in early 2022,″ comments René Lasseron, CEO of Fienta.

Last night, the second concert of the final round of the IV Tallinn International Piano Competition took place in the great hall of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, after which the jury determined the results of the competition. The first prize went to David Munk-Nielsen, the second prize went to Théotime Gillot from France, and the third prize went to Japanese pianist Misora Ozaki.

Estonian pianist Tähe-Lee Liiv, Genki Takai from Japan and Jiyoung Kim from the Republic of Korea were awarded the finalist diplomas. Out of 31 participants, 6 pianists made it through two demanding rounds to the finals, where they performed piano concertos with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Arvo Volmer.

The chairman of the jury, Eteri Andjaparize (USA / Georgia), was pleased that the competition could take place with all participants in one room without video performances. She also praised the strong level of the performers and the smooth work of the jury. “The discussions were so reasonable and smooth that they were almost dull,” Andjaparidze mused.

Igor Cognolato, a jury member from Italy, highlighted the professionalism of the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra and conductor Volmer: “Participants had the opportunity to choose from such a large number of excellent and complex piano concertos. This means that the orchestra and the conductor would also be ready to play them all, and this is undoubtedly unusual.”

The first three prizes in the competition and the finalists won monetary prizes: € 10,000, € 7,000 and € 4,000. €1,500 accompanied the diplomas. Pianists were also awarded numerous special prizes. Among them, the award for the best performance of Estonian music went to Shinyoung Lee from the Republic of Korea for her outstanding performance of composer Heino Eller’s music. The members of the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra (ERSO) chose Misora Ozaki as their favorite stage partner who is invited to perform with the orchestra in the future.

Evita Lohu received the prize of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre in the form of an educational or a concert trip. ERSO and EAMT also presented a prize together – in February, EAMT student Hyewon Chung will perform as a soloist in front of the traditional joint project of both orchestras.

Mantas Šernius, a doctoral student of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, received the creative scholarship of the Association of Estonian Professional Musicians. Tähe-Lee Liiv was awarded a performance in the Palace Music Concert Series as well as the “Hope for the Future” award for a promising pianist offered by the Estonian Piano Teachers’ Association.

The concert agency Eesti Kontsert chose pianist Jiyoung Kim for a solo recital in the Estonia Concert Hall. Théotime Gillot will perform at a concert at the House of the Blackheads as part of the Tallinn Philharmonic Society Award.

David Munk-Nielsen was born in Copenhagen and started playing the piano at the age of five. He is currently studying at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki with Professor Erik T. Tawaststjerna.

The jury consisted of pianists and pedagogues, including Eteri Andjaparidze (chairwoman, Georgia / USA), Igor Cognolato (Italy), Juris Kalnciems (Latvia), Antti Siirala (Finland) and Ivari Ilja (Estonia). 

The competition took place from November 25 until December 3. It was hosted by the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and the Estonian Pianists’ Association.

More information: tipc.eamt.ee

On 1 December, the admission opened for MA in Contemporary Performance and Composition (CoPeCo). The application deadline is 31 January, 2022.

CoPeCo is a two-year joint master’s programme in contemporary performance and composition, offering the students an open platform for experimental artistic practice within a European setting.

The programme aims to create a dynamic environment that supports and promotes contemporary musical expression in all aspects, including creation, production, performance and the relationship between musicians and society. The programme achieves this by establishing a joint platform, where composers and performers can begin new artistic collaborations, interact with artists from other disciplines, work with live electronics and develop their improvisational skills.

The consortium includes the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, the Conservatoire National Supérieur Musique et Danse in Lyon and the Hamburg University of Music and Theatre.

CoPeCo programme co-director is Taavi Kerikmäe, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Music.

More info: copeco.net

Anneli Tohver will defend her doctoral thesis on 20 December at 11.00 in room C-405 for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Music):

Pianisti koostöö balletiartistidega: koreograafiat toetava muusikalise interpretatsiooni otsinguil
(The pianist’s collaboration with ballet artistes: exploring musical interpretation which supports choreography)

Supervisor: Professor Kristel Pappel, PhD (EAMT)

Opponent: Mihhail Gerts, PhD (Tallinn/Berlin)

The doctoral thesis is available HERE (in Estonian) and in print in the EAMT library.

In my doctoral thesis “The pianist’s collaboration with ballet artistes: exploring musical interpretation which supports choreography”, I looked at how pianists and ballet artistes work together, and my main research questions were: how to create an interpretation which supports choreography and what kind of musical means of expression are significant in this process. The third research topic – which became the central focus and the most substantial part of my written work and creative projects – was: how to put the experiences gained in the ballet theatre into practice in smaller ensembles like a chamber ensemble with ballet artistes.

In vocal and instrumental music, the pianist playing in the ensemble has one or several solo parts, the ballet pianist, on the other hand, supports choreographic movement. This requires expertise in the performance traditions of ballet music as well as the specificity of dance movements. I looked for ensemble elements – akin to those existing in musical ensembles – in the collaboration of the ballet artiste and the ballet pianist. With every kind of ensemble, it is desirable that the pianist understands the activity of his/her ensemble partner, being supportive in an accompanying function and, if necessary, an expressive partner in the solo material of a piano part.

There is not much research in Estonia on the subject of the ballet pianist, nor are there any handbooks available in the Estonian language. Whereas from the dancer’s point of view the field is continuously developing, the same cannot be said from the perspective of the pianist. This work is part of the doctoral creative-research project, which aimed to develop this field academically and pedagogically.

Today, 31 young pianists from all over the world drew their order of performance, thus kicking off the IV Tallinn International Piano Competition. The competition will take place in three rounds at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and the winner will be announced on December 3.

Despite the debilitating effects the pandemic had on competition culture, 31 pianists from 12 countries have found their way to Tallinn. The competition is organised fully live, neglecting the now understandably popular digital format. In addition to piano players from neighboring countries, those from further afield come from Spain, France, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea and China.

“Taking part and testing your limits in a classical music competition is certainly not an undertaking one does out of a whim,” says renowned pianist Mihkel Poll, the winner of the very first Tallinn International Piano Competition and one the head organisers now. “So we are all the happier that pianists from so many different places are gathering in Tallinn. Though the Tallinn international piano competition is still young, we want to continue to grow into a musical event that young pianists are looking forward to for many years to come,” he adds.

The demanding program gives the performers the opportunity to demonstrate their skills in various styles and techniques. The finalists will perform with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Arvo Volmer.

A total of almost 36 hours of live music will be heard by an international jury of acclaimed pianists, including Eteri Andjaparidze (chairwoman, Georgia / USA), Ivari Ilja (Estonia), Juris Kalnciems (Latvia), Antti Siirala (Finland) and Igor Cognolato (Italy).

More information about the competition programme and repertoire can be found on the website at tipc.eamt.ee or on Facebook: @tallinninternationalpianocompetition.

Mihkel Poll (2006), Kristi Kapten (2011) and Anna Szałucka (2016) have previously won the Tallinn International Piano Competition. The organizers of the competition are the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and the Association of Estonian Pianists.

Live streams: https://bit.ly/3DLlJTW

Kirke Karja will defend her doctoral thesis on 20 December at 11.00 in room C-405 for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Music):

Protsessimuusika elementidest jazzmuusika kompositsioonis ja improvisatsioonis
(Process Music Elements in Jazz Composition and Improvisation)

Supervisor: professor Kerri Kotta, PhD (EAMT)

Opponent: Mihhail Gerts, PhD (Tallinn/Berlin)

The doctoral thesis is available HERE (in Estonian) and in print in the EAMT library.

This thesis explores how contemporary jazz music composition and improvisation participate in musical communication. More specifically, I observe structures that we can find in process music (music emerging from a process or multiple processes). To explore this topic, I used concepts developed by Fred Lerdahl: compositional grammar and listening grammar. Compositional grammar is what a composer intended while writing the piece. Listening grammar is what a listener hears and understands from the compositional grammar, interpreted subjectively by listeners to the degree allowed by their comprehension.

As a researcher, I am most interested in situations in which compositional grammar changes without affecting listening grammar, i.e. when composed and improvised parts of a musical piece appear in ways that extend beyond the listener’s ability to grasp musical structure.

I differentiate between composition and improvisation. In my work, the main difference between composition and improvisation is that when composing, I have the opportunity to work on and revise every musical detail as long as I need to until I am satisfied. When I am improvising, musical decisions take place in real time and there is no opportunity to edit afterwards.

In my compositions, I employ techniques borrowed from process music. Process music has a structure in which musical motifs and elements transform step-by-step, making sound events predictable. Processes are mainly found in rhythms and pitches, with most known techniques being additive and subtractive, phase, and polyphony of processes – where different processes happen simultaneously yet independently of one another.

My main research questions are derived from the logical connection of processes in composition and improvisation. These are:
1) How does one change compositional grammar in such a way that listening grammar will not change? In other words: if the listener has understood the „rules” within a piece of improvised music which contains certain processes, how can an improviser change those rules in such a way that the listener does not comprehend the change?
2) Is it possible to create different, even contrasting, musical ideas without losing elements of process music, and how? In other words: how does one avoid situations in which a musical piece becomes a monotonous musical fabric? Is it possible to guarantee that a musical piece will still contain surprises, tension, conflict, and solutions?

In order to answer these questions, it was necessary to find, create, and utilize tools to assist me.
[– – –]

During my research, I found that I want to use process techniques in my creative work in the future because:
1) There is an infinite number of opportunities and ways to use them.
2) If I use them polyphonically, it helps me create fascinating layers.
3) Since the process music is „writing itself”, addiction to inspiration is subsequently avoidable.

I also discovered that a greater understanding of compositional grammar and listening grammar inspires me to manipulate listeners’ perceptions. It lends itself – and leads me – to search for musical and situational opportunities which purposely confuse listeners. I found new meaning in music: instead of „performing” it (a result-orientated activity and a narrow-minded way of thinking about it), I now think of music as a „game”. Such an understanding allows it to exist as an engaging basis and medium for interaction between both creators and listeners as co-participants.

The aim of these sessions is to offer prospective MA in Contemporary Physical Performance Making (CPPM) students an opportunity to meet the course teaching team and ask questions about the application and audition process, and find out specific information about the course. Former CPPM students will be present, so it is possible to enquire about their experience on the course.

All prospective applicants can choose from the following options:

1 December 2021
10:00 (GMT +2)
20:00 (GMT +2)

10 January 2022
10:00 (GMT +2)
20:00 (GMT +2)

20 February 2022
16:00 (GMT +2)

Each session will last around 90 minutes.

Please register for one of these sessions using this link

Closer to your selected session you will be emailed a Zoom link to join.

If you have any questions prior to these sessions, feel free to contact us via email info_cppm@eamt.ee

The course application deadline is 1 March 2022.

On November 1, the admission opened for MA in Contemporary Physical Performance Making (CPPM) at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. The applications process remains open until January 31, 2022. Auditions will take place from March 7 to April 17 in various cities worldwide: Tallinn, Berlin, Milan, London, Seoul and Melbourne. You can find out more about the admission criteria and process here.

CPPM was founded under the belief that the most intense artistic growth occurs through genuine encounters with inspirational artists. That is why most studies are conducted by internationally renowned directors, choreographers, performers, and companies from all over the world. The confirmed guest artists for 2022-24 include Anne Bogart (USA), Olivier de Sagazan (France), Juan Dominguez (Spain), Kim Collier (Canada), Theodoros Terzoupoulos (Greece), Guillaume Pige (England), Stacy Makishi (Hawaii, USA), Tadashi Endo (Japan), Fran Barbe (Australia), etc. You can see the complete list of guest artists here.

“CPPM is a ground-breaking course that takes postgraduate education out of the classroom and puts practical experience with world-leading makers of performance at the heart of the learning process. Students will work alongside some of the most exciting directors, choreographers, performance makers, artists and companies across the world to further their artistic practice through active collaboration, devising and performance,” said CPPM course leader professor Jüri Nael.

CPPM offers a generous scholarship scheme allowing eight accepted students to get a discount on their tuition fees. You can read more about the tuition fees and scholarship scheme here.

In 2021, the first cohort of CPPM students graduated: 12 students from 8 countries. Their final projects gave birth to the international performing arts festival CPPM Manifestal, which took place from May to June 2021 and included more than 70 performances in different locations across Tallinn.

The deadline for applying for CPPM is January 31, 2022