Lonnie Cline leads a combined choir of over 100 singers from Clackamas Community College Chamber Choir, Unistus Chamber Choir, members of Estonian mixed choirs from the West Coast and from Ontario, Canada, along with members from the Portland Symphonic Choir, Oregon Repertory Singers, Bach Cantata Choir, and the Oregon City High School Singers, together with a 32 member orchestra, in this concert to be remembered.

The opening ceremony commences with a regal, narrated procession of West Coast Estonian Festival Emblems from 1953 through the current festival.

The first half of the concert begins with Cyrillus Kreek’s “Requiem”, the first requiem ever written by an Estonian composer. Kreek composed this majestic piece between 1925 to 1927. It was first performed on October 20, 1929 in Tallinn, by the Estonian Music Department mixed choir and the Estonian Symphonic Orchestra. This monumental composition is truly magnificent, with discernable themes from Estonian folk music. The Opening Ceremony Concert for the Estonian West Coast Festival of 2011 will be the first performance of Kreek’s “Requiem”, with full orchestration, on the North American continent.

The second half of the concert features Estonian choral works such as “Koit” (Dawn) by Tõnis Mägi, “Mu Isamaa on minu arm” by Gustav Ernesaks was arguably the most important Estonian song during the Soviet occupation, “Laul põhjamaast” (Song of the Northern Land) by Ülo Vinter, “Lõikuse laul” by Gustav Ernesaks, and “Väikemaa” by Urmas Lattikas.

Lonnie Cline, Director of Vocal Activities at Clackamas Community College, holds a B.A. in Music Education, Vocal Specialist from Idaho State University, Pocatello, ID. He studied for an M.A. in Choral Conducting at the Universtiy of Oregon in Eugene, where he was a graduate teaching fellow and director of two University jazz ensembles. Clackamas Community College vocal groups have performed in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and Europe. Most recently, the Chamber Singers toured Europe and performed in Tallinn, Estonia at the World Estonian Friendship Song and Dance Festival. Over the past 30 years, Lonnie Cline has served as adjudicator/clinician throughout the world. In 1998, he served as a Jazz artist/teacher in residence at the Georg Ots Music School in Estonia.

Lonnie Cline, Unistus, and the Clackamas Community College Chamber Choir, have been substantial supporters of the Portland Estonian Community through choral music since 1994.

Map to St. Mary’s Academy:

Our choral and folk dance program is presented through the narration of “Tuljak”, Estonia’s most famous song and dance. Singers, dancers, musicians, and children from Estonia, Canada, and the West Coast join together in a musical interpretation of this much-loved wedding story. Our own “Viruvanem” and his lovely wife invite us to gather in the village square. There, we meet the young couple Tõnni and Manni, and join in celebrating their marriage. Audience participation is encouraged with several sing-a-longs and a community waltz. A musical extravaganza!

Participating in this grand production is a cast of over 250 performers! Kihnu Poisid, Ahto Nurk and Virve Lääne, Kajakas folk dance troupe from Pärnu, Unistus choir, Clackamas Community College Chamber Choir, Trillium Voices Ensemble, Kungla folk dance troupe from Toronto, The Toronto choir, the Hamilton choir, Kilplased folk dance troupe from Vancouver BC, Keerutajad folk dance troupe from Vancouver BC, the Vancouver BC choir, Leelo women’s ensemble, Tuhandest Tuultest folk dance troupe from Seattle, the Seattle choir, the San Francisco choir, Tulehoidjad folk dance troupe from Portland, the Portland choir, and the childrens choir and folk dance troupe from the West Coast.

The out-door worship service will be held at “The Grotto” (www.thegrotto.org), a beautiful and serene destination on the “must visit list” in Portland. Large fir trees and rhododendrons surround the sanctury and provide a calm, natural setting. The heart of the shrine is a rock cave carved into the 110 foot rock cliff. Bishop Andres Taul, from Toronto, Ontario, and Pastor Hendrik Laur, from Olympia, Washington, will conduct the worship service beginning at 9:00 o’clock on Saturday morning.

The 150 member LEP2011 choir, consisting of Unistus, Clackamas Community College Chamber Choirs, members of Estonian mixed choirs from the West Coast and from Ontario, Canada, will perform during the service. The combined choirs will perform “Tee silmapiirile”, by Rene Eespere, “Taaveti laul”, by Cyrillus Kreek, “Hoia, Jumal, Eestit”, by Juhan Aavik, “Eestimaa Palve”, by Elle-Eha Are, and “Heliseb väljadel”, by Urmas Sisask.

Join us, for a beautiful religious and musical experience, as we celebrate our faith in Christ on this wonderful summer morning!

The LEP golf outing will be at the Heron Lakes Golf Course (greenback course) www.heronlakesgolf.com which is 10 minutes from the Doubletree Hotel on Saturday August 6th first tee-off 8:00 am. For those who require transportation to and from the golf course rides will be provided at 7:00 am. There will be a barbecue lunch starting at 1:00 pm. The cost of the outing is $85.00 per person which includes green fees, the lunch and prizes. Additional optional costs to be paid by individuals at the day of the tournament are a) Carts $26.00 or $13.00 shared, b) Rental Clubs $25.00 a set and c) Driving range balls $3.50 a basket. The cutoff date for signing up for the tournament is July 15th on a first come basis. There is a maximum of 24 golfers.

During LEP members of Estonian academic organizations meet for lunch. We will get acquinted with our academic family and activities in Estonia as well as on the West Coast. We will discuss the role of academic organizations in the society 20 years after regaining independence. High school and university students are welcome. Members please wear your colors.

The PSU Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ken Selden, performs a broad range of symphonic and chamber orchestra repertoire. Yearly collaborations include performances with the PSU choruses, opera and instrumental faculty. The Symphony also hosts an annual Concerto Competition and Composition Competition. Recent soloists have included world-class artists such as Awadagin Pratt, Matt Haimovitz, Orli Shaham and Manuel Barrueco. Under the direction of Ken Selden since 2006, the PSU Symphony has won three national awards from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).

Clackamas Community College Chamber Choir and the Unistus Chamber Choir perform together under the direction of choirmaster and artistic director Lonnie Cline.  Lonnie Cline’s choirs have enriched West Coast Estonian Festivals with beautiful Estonian choral music since 1995.  Unistus Chamber Choir, formed in 2000, has performed at every Portland Estonian Society’s Vabariigi Aastapäev for the past 11 years.  Clackamas Community College continues to bring Estonian choral music into the lives of its chamber choir members for the past 16 years.  The Clackamas Community College Chamber Choir performed at the 23^rd Laulupidu choir festival in 1999, and Unistus Chamber Choir performed a the 24^th Laulupidu choir festival in 2004.

Trillium Voices was founded in 2007 to  combine the diverse skills and experiences of each of it’s members, providing a performance experience that is bound by no genres and is truly from the heart.  Our members have a long history of singing  Estonian choral music, particularly by the composer Veljo Tormis.   Trillium Voices had the honor of singing at the 25th Laulupidu choir festival in 2009, a recognized UNESCO world heritage event.  Read more about Trillium Voices at www.trilliumvoices.com

Saturday evening enjoy cocktail hour in the foyer as you wait with anticipation for the ballroom doors to open. Once inside, let the celebration begin! Savor a three-course dinner expertly prepared from such local Pacific Northwest ingredients as tribal caught wild salmon. Immerse yourself in the melodies of bands from Estonia and Portland and be drawn onto the dance floor by their irresistible rhythms.