Choir leader: It is now our turn to help Estonians abroad

Choir conductor and artistic director of the global Estonian cultural festival Esto 2025, Hirvo Surva, said on Vikerraadio that while in the past century Estonians abroad supported both the Estonian people and the state, now — at a time when the roots of the diaspora are growing ever more distant — it is our turn to support them.

Surva said that half of his summer will be spent working, as the festival — set to begin on June 25 — will feature concerts in Stockholm, Narva and Tallinn.

"But it's enjoyable work. There are all sorts of concerts coming up, but I'll be able to rest during the second half of the summer. That starts on July 10, and this year it lasts all the way to the end of August. Completely unprecedented," Surva remarked.

According to Surva, it's always interesting how each national Song Festival is accompanied by talk of needing to introduce something new. "I tend to think we should focus more on preserving the values and traditions we already have. Of course, it's natural — everything evolves, society evolves, music evolves, and this year there are indeed some new songs," he said.

"But what sets this year apart is that I can't recall a festival ever being so strongly dedicated to language — our dialects and our native tongue. In that sense, this one is special. It's a meaningful step right now, a reminder of how beautiful our language is and how rich our dialects are. /.../ It shows the richness of our small piece of land."

Surva added that, to him, the text is the most important element in vocal music. "You have to understand what you're singing about, and you have to sing it in a way that shows you believe in the words — only then will your listener believe them too. And it's essential to give meaning to that content. First, you need to interpret the text, and only then can you build the harmonies and melody around it," the conductor explained.

Surva is also the artistic director of this year's Esto festival. Its goal is to reconnect Estonian communities from around the world, strengthening the global Estonian spirit and sense of unity.

"To my knowledge, there aren't any Estonians abroad in my own family tree. We've always stayed here. But my connection with the diaspora only began around 1996 or 1997, when Esto was held at the Song Festival Grounds in Tallinn for the first time. That's when real ties started forming. Since then, I've had quite a lot of contact with them and have been invited to many events," said Surva, adding that they are a truly wonderful group of people.

"Of course, they have their worries and challenges. The entire generation that left Estonia back then has grown very old. Now it's their children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren who are keeping things going — and maintaining the language is relatively difficult. The families I'm closer with still speak Estonian at home. Lately, I've noticed that when I speak with them, they all try very hard to respond in Estonian, but among themselves they quickly switch to English."

Surva acknowledged that this is understandable, given they live in a different society. "But the fact that they've taught their children and grandchildren the language and passed down the values they inherited from their parents or brought with them from here — that shows how strongly they're holding on to those things," he said.

"During the Soviet era and the early 1990s, we looked up to Estonians abroad with admiration, and quite a few of us received real support and help from them — our country did too, both morally and spiritually. They were the ones carrying Estonian identity forward and showing the world who and what Estonia really is. Now it's our turn to support them," Surva emphasized.