PAMYUA at Viljandi Folk!

PAMYUA

Estonia may be pretty cold, but you still don't expect to see Inuits here!

Last Friday, I had the amazing opportunity to travel to Viljandi Folk Festival with the Ambassador and Public Affairs staff. The Viljandi Folk Festival is one of the largest folk festivals in Europe! Around 25,000 people travel to the otherwise quiet town of Viljandi, mainly drawn by the friendly atmosphere and storybook location. I couldn’t believe the setting, in the ruins of Viljandi castle, overlooking a lush lake and forest. Immediately upon entering the gates we were hearing music from all over Estonia, Europe, and the world!

The main purpose of this trip was to meet and introduce the Inuit band PAMYUA (pronounced Bum-YO-ah), whose members hail from Alaska. PAMYUA means encore in Yupik and Rolling Stones magazine has called them the ‘best Inuit band in the world.’ Over tea in the Estonian Traditional Music Centre, we learned more about their incredible background, Yupik culture, and the inspiration for their music. Ossie Kairaiuak, who composes the majority of PAMYUA’s songs, told us how he wrote the song ‘Bubble Gum’ in colorful detail, inspired by a student who was chewing it in his class. Being exposed to yet another facet of the wide range of American cultures was both fascinating and exciting. PAMYUA were keen to share their story and love of their heritage with us and their friendliness was contagious.

Ambassador Levine with PAMYUA

Next we met up with Ando Kiviberg, who founded the festival in 1993 and has been an active part of it ever since. He gave us a wonderful tour of the Estonian Traditional Music Centre, a wonderfully restored store house on the castle ruins. Every room was decorated with Estonian needlework from a different region and some stages had ‘trick elevators’ and gorgeous halls. This festival truly became ‘Estonian’ after I saw the IT guys sitting in the computer headquarters running multiple stages and numerous screens simultaneously, all the while keeping an eye on a rainstorm that was threatening to come through. They were two young Estonians working their high tech magic in a way only Estonians can. Everything was interconnected and linked to the internet; it looked like a scene from a high-tech movie. We then went to the Folk Music library, where the Ambassador presented Ando Kiviberg with a book about American Jazz, adding a different kind of folk music to the mix.

After the tour we toured the Kondas Center which held magnificent paintings from Paul Kondas and other naïve artists. Naïve art means that these artists weren’t trained formally but I would have never guessed as I saw brilliant canvases painted with vivid scenes and political commentaries.

Finally, it was time for PAMYUA to play! After the Ambassador said a few words of introduction in Estonian, the band came on for a highly traditional and interactive performance. Soon, the whole crowd was telling the story about a hunter and a seal in Yupik style, waving their hands and singing in verse. This passion of storytelling shared by PAMYUA was now radiating through the crowd and it was a great moment to be a part of.

On the long ride back to Tallinn after a great afternoon in Viljandi, I reflected on the tradition of folk music that brings people from all over the world together to sing, dance, and share their cultures with anyone and everyone. If I ever find myself in Estonia for another summer, I will definitely make it a point to spend an entire weekend in this happy, friendly, and exciting festival.

Post by PA Intern Aalia Udawala
Photo by PA Intern Oleg Remizov