Songlore of Saaremaa islanders in the early 20^th century

The CD presents an overview of Saaremaa islanders' songlore of the last century's earlier decades. Of the older alliterative songs, those that were sung to children and had a practical function preserved longer while acquiring some newer features. In the late 19^th and early 20^th century, the newer songs composed of stanzas with end rhymes had become popular everywhere in Estonia. In Saaremaa all types of the newer folk songs were performed: songs, reflecting historical events and social relations, soldiers' songs, seamen's songs, local village songs, circlegame and dance songs, sentimental love songs and ballads. Some of them were brought there as oral heritage from the mainland or spread by way of books, while others were of local origin.

The most original genre of the newer song tradition was the local village song. These were mostly humorous or satirical songs performed by men. Their subjects touched upon local way of life, various village events and incidences, good and bad in people, relationships of the youth and local expressions on historical events. Lyrical songs about homeland make up a separate group.

Another very popular genre were circlegames, where the main song served as the accompaniment for moving in the circle and with dance songs inserted between stanzas. They accompanied dancing with alternating partners inside the circle. Ballads were often used as main songs.

The revolts of 1905–1907 and the following actions of czarist death squads were often reflected in the songs that depicted historical events. In the early decades of the 20^th century World War I became a very popular subject, because many Estonian men were drafted into the army. The reflections of young Estonian soldiers in their final hours, missing their home, loved ones and sweethearts were themes favoured by many singers. Non-wartime history also appeared in songs, for instance life in Kuressaare in the early decades of the 20^th century, holidaymakers' train ride from harbour to town and the curative mud of Kuressaare that was famous even outside Estonia.

Seamen's songs tell us about fearless seafarers of Saaremaa, who were not afraid of raging storms and did not even care about sweethearts crying for them at home. However, they were ready to accept harsh destiny, if that was in stall for them. The songs often contain the motifs of shipwreck and death. The old alliterative shipwreck song by Anna Miller, which her mother sung to her as a child while spinning yarn on a spinning wheel, was also a song about life at sea (“Shipwreck”). Among newer songs there are merry accounts of seamen's adventures in harbour taverns. A rare song of a deep-sea sounding team that travel around the Estonian shores describes the happenings in their everyday life on the sea (“Coming to Toila”).