illumineerima

The British Council is planning changes to the way we operate in Europe. We will operate less as a cultural institute in Europe and more as a cultural relations partner with reduced number of walk-in information centres…. As a result of these changes the British Council will close its Information Centre in Tallinn in spring 2008. The Information Centre collection will be donated to a partner library, further details will be available as soon as negotiations have been finalised with the receiving institution. The work of the information Centre will continue as usual until the closure and we will offer you the full set of services we have been doing until today.

I’ve never been to the Information Centre, so I don’t have anything much to say on the matter, but I am glad that they’ll be arranging for their library to remain in Estonia. I’ve also never been to one of their cultural events, although that may be because they really suck at sharing the info. I received an email this morning about a British music video screening event tonight at KUMU (at 6pm). I prefer not to know than to know too late.

This past Saturday, February 24, was Independence Day in Estonia. So, in recognition of that day, I’m posting an excerpt from the original (translated) Declaration of Independence from February 24, 1918:

Never in the course of centuries have the Estonian people lost their ardent desire for Independence. From generation to generation Estonians have kept alive the secret hope that in spite of enslavement and oppression by other nations the time will come in Estonia “when all splinters, at both end, will burst forth into flames” and when “Kalev will come home to bring his children happiness.”

Now this time has arrived.

An unprecedented struggle of nations has destroyed the rotten foundations of the Russian Tsarist Empire. All over the Sarmatian plains ruinous anarchy is spreading, threatening to overwhelm in its wake all peoples living within the borders of the former Russian Empire. From the West the victorious armies of Germany are approaching in order to claim their share of Russia’s legacy and, above all, to take possession of the coastal territories of the Baltic Sea.

In this fateful hour the Estonian National Council, as the legal representative of our land and people, has, in unanimous agreement with Estonian democratic political parties and organizations, and by virtue of the right of self-determination of peoples, found it necessary to take the following decisive steps to shape the destiny of Estonian land and people.

ESTONIA,
within her historical and ethnic boundaries, is declared as of today an
INDEPENDENT DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC. 

Silly me, I forgot to mention that I now have a column on Estonia at PopMatters. It’s called Babe in Estland and you can read the first column here: Falling In Love, Estonian-style. Enjoy!

Last night, I saw Kurtis Blow perform in Tallinn. It was truly a strange experience to see the legendary, old school rapper perform in a small club (Club Prive) for a completely white and European crowd.

How do performers maintain their passion for their music?  Take Kurtis Blow, for example. His songs, some of which were mainstream hits and are now classics, date back to the 70s and 80s. He’s performed them a ton of times, heard them on the radio, in movies, sampled in newer songs, etc. And yet he can still get up on the stage after 35 years in the business and share his love of old school hip hop with the crowd. I guess that’s the point. Love. You have to love it.

Anyway, I was out until 2 a.m., something I never do on Wednesdays and rarely on any other night. But it was fun. And now I can tell my friends I once saw Kurtis Blow.

There’s an exhibit at the National Library of Estonia that’s up until Friday (Feb. 23) that I recommend visiting. I don’t think there’s a unifying theme in this exhibit beyond the individual exploration by artists into the ideas of “What is a book? What is book art?” Visiting the exhibit won’t take much of your time, but it will introduce you to the array of contemporary work by Estonian book artists. And since it’s only up until this Friday, hurry up!

For those of you who just can’t make it or need a bit of a teaser, here are a few photos I snapped:

I meant to post about this earlier in the week, but it’s been a bit busy ’round these parts. Guess who won a Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance? Arvo Pärt’s “Da Pacem,” performed by none other than the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and conducted by Paul Hillier. One small leap for Pärt, one giant leap for Estonia. In case you’re curious, you can see the complete list of Grammy Award winners here.

When it comes to English-language publications that regularly cover Estonia, there aren’t many options. Here’s the run-down:

The Baltic Times (newspaper): According to their website, they’re “an independent weekly newspaper that covers latest political, economic, business, and cultural events in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.” This is the only weekly newspaper in English, so they don’t have much competition. That may be why the quality of the writing is a bit iffy. Part of this has been a lack of a good editor (a good writer does not a good editor make) and a lack of writers with native English skills. Which is not to say it’s all crap, and it’s likely to be getting better in the near future (if the rumors of a new editor are true). Still, it’s more or less essential reading for those who can’t read Postimees.

B EAST (magazine): I discovered B EAST recently, and I’m glad I did. This is a high-quality, glossy, more-or-less-quarterly mag that is all about “FASHION, ATTITUDE, CULTure FOR THE NEW EUROPE.” Though this isn’t a mag focused exclusively on Estonia or the Baltics, its editor-in-chief operates out of Tallinn, so there’s a fair amount of coverage on Estonia. The most refreshing thing is that they cover fashion, unlike the other English-language pubs. It’s very much geared towards hip, young things.

City Paper (magazine): This monthly magazine’s been around since the early 90s, but it was sold a few years back to a Finnish company when the original owners/editors returned to the U.S. It’s editor-in-chief is Scott Diel, an expat who originally came to Estonia with the U.S. Peace Corps in the early 90s. It isn’t the most beautiful mag around, but the articles are consistently good. The restaurant/hotel guide comes in handy, too. Aside from its print version, City Paper publishes a weekly newsletter. Week In Review is a clever survey of the week’s news delivered to your inbox and published on the website.

Tallinn In Your Pocket (magazine): It’s always seemed to me that IYP is geared towards backpacking students, but it’s a useful guide for those visiting Tallinn. Perhaps even more so because it isn’t written by Estonians (like Tallinn This Week), so this publication may have a better idea of what visitors are looking for. Lots of restaurant reviews and ideas on things to do around town, with plenty of online content (the same can’t be said for The Baltic Times or City Paper).

Tallinn This Week (magazine): This is a city guide written by Estonians and published six times per year. It’s small, free, and easy to find around town. I usually pick up a copy when I see it, though it’s strictly a guide without commentary or reviews.

Did I miss anything?