Latvians come from a group of people whose joy of singing could not be taken away by war or exile. This is the story of a choir director Ilze Sakare (Ilze Šakare) (née Ristamecs in 1944), an active member of the Swedish Latvian community and the Gothenburg Latvian Choir.
When Karlis Karelis (Kārlis Karelis), a conductor and organist from Vainode who had gone into exile to Sweden, founded the Gothenburg Latvian Choir in 1955, Ilze was a young girl of 11. Her parents were active people in Latvian culture society. The whole family joined the choir. Listening to the beautiful stories of participation in song festivals during the first independence years in the Republic of Latvia, she also had a dream to one day sing at the Song Festival in Riga, in free Latvia.
The first major events in the early years of the Gothenburg Latvian Choir were the participation in the 1st (Hamburg, 1964) and 2nd (Hanover, 1968) European Latvian Song Festivals under the direction of conductor Karelis, and they made a strong impression on Ilze. In the early 1970s, the conductor was no longer able to continue leading the choir due to illness. At that time, the choir had begun to prepare the programme for the 3rd European Latvian Song Festival in Cologne. The choir was very eager to take part in the 100th anniversary concert but without the conductor the choir's future fate and especially its participation in the festival became uncertain.
Gothenburg Latvian Choir. Conductor Ilze Sakare (centre) at the 3rd European Latvian Song Festival in 1973, Cologne, Germany
The choir did manage to participate in the Song Festival in 1973, because in 1971 conductor Karelis addressed his 26-year-old young choir singer Sakare and invited her to teach and train the choir members in the future. She did not have the appropriate musical training, so, to be able to lead and conduct the choir, she studied different singing voices used in the choir and attended a Swedish course for amateur choir conductors. While conducting the choir, Sakare worked with Andris Vitolins (Andris Vītoliņš), the then conductor of the Stockholm Latvian Choir as well as with conductor and composer Alberts Jerums (Alberts Jērums) in London, with whom the choir developed a particularly cordial relationship.
Participation in the Song Festival in exile created a desire to meet other choirs also after the festival which holds such a special significance for Latvians. The Gothenburgers performed several concerts after the Song Festival in Stockholm together with the Stockholm Latvian Choir. Choirs from Lund travelled to Denmark to perform for the local Latvian community in Copenhagen. In Gothenburg, the choir regularly performed at church services and events. The choir's activities were highly appreciated in the Latvian community in Gothenburg, and the choir members were socially active with a strong desire to preserve Latvian identity and a great love for the Latvian choral tradition.
Ilze Sakare – Director of Gothenburg Latvian Choir “ELKS”. 5th European Latvian Song Festival in 1982, Leeds, Great Britain
In its heyday, the Gothenburg Latvian Choir had about 30 singers. Under the direction of Sakare, the choir participated in all subsequent European Latvian Song Festivals: in 1973 in Cologne; in 1977 in London; in 1982 in Leeds and in 1989 in Helsingborg, and in three World Free Latvian Song Days in Europe: in 1979 in Gotland; in 1984 and 1987 in Münster. At the London festival, Ilze had the honour of conducting the opening songs, and in Helsingborg she conducted the whole choir. At Munster Song Days in 1984, Ilze's daughters Sandra and Daina took part in the Children and Youth Concert. The youngest daughter, Daina, then only 7 years old, sang “Es beju mamenai vino poša meiteņa” alone in front of the whole audience. Her two daughters, like herself, grew up among the singers and became choristers in the Gothenburg Latvian Choir.
Gothenburg Latvian Choir parade. In the forefront: Sakare with her daughters and mother; 1st World Free Latvian Song Days in Europe in 1979, Visby, Sweden
The most uplifting event in the choir's history and in Sakare's life was the reunion of the Latvian people when she took part in the XX Latvian Song Festival in Riga in 1990. The emotional experience was overwhelming for every participant of the Song Festival. It was an indescribable feeling for the choir director to be together with thousands of singing compatriots in her homeland, free Latvia. Sakare's childhood dream had come true.
A visit to Latvia in 1990 allowed her to become friends with choir “Līva” from Liepaja and its conductor Jekabs Ozolins (Jēkabs Ozoliņš). Choir “Liva” invited the Gothenburg Latvian Choir to Liepaja for a visit in 1990, and in 1991 the Gothenburg choir invited singers from Liepaja to visit them in Sweden. With the help of local Latvians and some Swedish friends, the Gothenburgers arranged a concert tour for their “sister choir” in Sweden and Norway. The friendship between the choir and the singers was long-lasting, for some singers even until the end of their lives.
Gothenburg Latvian Mixed Choir is a “sister choir” of the choir “Liva”. XXI Latvian Song and XI Latvian Dance Festival, 1993
The Gothenburg Latvian Choir also participated in the next two Latvian Song and Dance Festivals in Riga under the direction of Sakare. She stepped down from her position as choir conductor after the Song Festival in 1998. However, after a break of several years, Sakare invited the choristers to gather in the choir again to participate in the Song and Dance Festival in 2013. Many new members were happy to come and sing, and the renewed choir travelled to Riga to take part in the festival one last time under the leadership of conductor Sakare.
Sakare handed over the reins of the choir to her long-time choir member Ausma Pavulane (Ausma Pāvulāne) who continued to work with the choir, successfully preparing it for the Song Festival in 2018. The choir also took part in the XXVII Song and XVII Dance Festival in Riga in 2023.
Find out more about conductor Sakare and the Song Festivals in Latvia and in exile in the digital collection of the Latvian song and dance celebrations.
*The story is based on the personal memoirs of conductor Sakare about her years in Gothenburg Latvian Choir.
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