The Tallinn Song Festival Grounds, the host of the huge Estonian singing events, has opened a visitor centre that tells a story of the Singing Revolution, the tradition of the Song Festivals and the history of the Song Festival Grounds.
“The aim of the visitor centre is to offer a unique educational experience in a place that is known as a landmark of Estonian culture, song festivals and the cradle of the Singing Revolution,” Katrin Aunpu, a representative of the nation’s most cherished event place, told Estonian World in April.
The centre will also enable to conduct educational programmes for schools, organise events and thematic exhibitions.
“We have long dreamed of establishing a visitor centre on the Song Festival Grounds, and I am delighted that it is for the significant 30th anniversary of regaining independence that we made it a reality,” Urmo Saareoja, the Song Festival Grounds’ director, said in a statement on 18 August.
The Song Festival Grounds has played a crucial part in the Estonian history.
After the Second World War, during the Soviet occupation, the song festivals, held here, helped keep the national identity alive. In 1988, several hundred thousand people gathered at the grounds and sang for freedom for many days and nights. The Singing Revolution helped end the Soviet rule and indirectly led to Estonia’s independence once again in 1991.
Cover: Tallinn Song Festival Grounds visitor centre. Photo by Raul Mee.
