On July 2-4, 2010, after a 32 year interval, the IX LITHUANIAN SONG FESTIVAL, “Daina Aš Gyvenu,” returned to Toronto, Canada, under the auspices of the Lithuanian American and Lithuanian Canadian Communities, Inc. and the North American Music Association.

FESTIVAL’S EVENTS

July 2:

Marijonas Mikutavičius Concert at 19:30

Often joining him by singing songs from his popular repertoire, the audience of 1000 guests warmly and with great enthusiasm welcomed Mikutavičius.

July 3:

All day Rehearsal of Participating Choirs at Hershey Centre

“Miestelio Vakaronė” at Toronto Airport Marriott Hotel at 17:00

A”Town Gathering” welcomed guests with a Lithuanian folk music ensemble, songs, spontaneous dancing , souvenirs, and ale.

July 4:

Sunday services

All three Toronto Lithuanian Parishes and Airport Marriott Hotel offered Morning Worship.

IX Lithuanian Song Festival, “Daina Aš Gyvenu” at Hershey Centre at 14:00

Three thousand people gathered to hear 1111 singers.

Banquet, “Miško Balsai,” at the International Centre at 19:00

An opportunity for all participants to reminisce, photograph, and celebrate.

PARTICIPANTS

The festival welcomed 54 choirs, who came from Lithuania, Ireland, Great Britain, Poland, United States of America, and Canada. Of the 1111 singers half were comprised of youth and children choirs. The Hannaford Street Silver Band, consisting of 40 members, accompanied the singers. The choirs were directed by 17 conductors.

PROGRAM

The title for the IX Lithuanian Song Festival, “Daina aš Gyvenu,” was chosen by the Artistic Director, Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė, as a symbolic elucidation of the road traveled from and to Lithuania by each of the singers. The thousands of songs, folk and classical, sung by participating choirs for decades were moments by which they touched Lithuania’s traditions, customs, and history. The title, therefore, was a statement that acknowledged their hard work and the uniqueness of the Lithuanian song and its traditions.

Artistic Director, Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė, building on the title, envisioned the festival as having a focus that would reflect the essence of the Lithuanian song through an unfolding of the verities of the human heart and its relation to culture. Laimutė Kisielienė and Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė, with the help of Nijolė Puranaitė-Benotienė, Birutė Litvinienė, and Jurgis Sederavičius, incorporated into the festival a scenario which focused on the earth’s and man’s journeys in association with the sun. The scenario starts with morning sounds which the sun awakens, leads to the day’s labor, and ends with reflections of the evening until from the cold night the rising sun bursts forth with the eternal spiritual values ingrained in the song and Lithuania’s traditions.

The festival included new compositions, each having a sponsor:

• Daina aš gyvenu – music L.Abaris, words N. Puranaitė-Benotienė;
• Saulė dovanojo – music and words K. Daugirdas;
• Dainuokim pasauliui – music S. Kliorys, words N. Puranaitė-Benotienė;
• Dainos sparnais – music R. Čyvaitė-Kliorienė, words N. Puranaitė-Benotienė;
• Buvo Žodis Lietuva – music R. Biliūnas, words V. Bučmienė;
• Nebuvo tai žemė – music R. Biliūnas, words N.Puranaitė-Benotienė.

The Festival’s publication, edited by Ramunė Jonaitienė with the Lithuanian entries written by Nijolė Puranaitė-Benotienė and Birutė Litvinienė, who, also, translated them, was published by the Organizing Committee and its co-chairs Rasa and Paulius Kuras. Included in the publication were greetings from cultural and political personages; explanation of the festival’s symbols and the Lithuanian song traditions; photos of participating choirs , their dirctors,and histories; the scenario with Lithuanian and English explanations, and the songs themselves.

A smaller format of the publication included the program.

THE SCENARIO—consisting of five parts:

First part: Morning: “Let Us Greet the Dawn with the Wings of a Song”

Morning, symbolizing birth, origin in point of time or place, inception, dawns as Krivių Krivaitis, the head priest of Lithuania’s Old Religion and our ancestors’ emissary, enters to ignite the altar. He, surrounded by thunder and lightning, is bringing the Sun’s sacred fire and with it our supplications, our songs, to commence the day.

Second part: Day: “I Need a Song as the Earth Needs the Sun”

The vestal virgins, who have accompanied the Krivių Krivaitis, unfurl bleached woven linen cloths. They are the road to our ancestors and gods and unite all those present. They give clarification to a man’s life: to his youth, to love, to the tasks to be done.

Third part: Evening: “Far Beyond the Star lies the Quiet Evening”

The sun sends fewer and fewer rays to the earth. The summer begins its transformation to winter. Krivių Krivaitis guards the sacred fire. Beyond the flame lies the star and beyond it our loved ones. It is this flame that ties us to them and to our land.

Fourth part: Night: “The Night’s Incantations”

With the setting sun our ancestors gathered under the sacred oak groves and prayed to the sacred fire: come from the stone, come from the tree, come from the heavens, come from earth Be charitable: protect us from the cold, from the dark. We, also, pray that after the dark night the sun would bring light to our beloved land.

Fifth part: Morning: “The Song and I are One”

We have traveled the sun’s full circle and have felt the resounding awareness ingrained in the songs, which are the history of our land. In them in every age, we find the joys, the sorrows, the aspirations of our land. They start from the sacred fires of our Old Religion and end as a sacred gift in our hearts.

THE STAGE DECORATIONS

The repertoire was enhanced by visual effects mounted by A. Pabedinskas. Architect J. Sederavičius and his creative entourage made geese and doves fly on stage, daisies and butterflies dance, oak leaves sway, the sacred fire burn. The program’s producers were R. Paškauskas and J. Valaitis.

THE EMBLEM

Snaigė Šileikienė created the symbol of the sun with two distinct faces: one light and one dark. When daylight is with us, night has come to Lithuania, but it is the same sun that unites us. The sun’s circle is, also, the earth’s and man’s life.

PROGRAM

The festival’s scenario dictated the program:

• While Darius Polikaitis conducted the opening marches, the names of the choirs and ensembles were introduced on screen.
• The directors and conductors entered the stage.
• Canadian, USA and Lithuanian national anthems.
• J. Govėdas’ “Viešpaties Pasaulis,” directed by Dalia Skinskaitė-Viskontienė, honored the deceased members from all the choirs and, especially, J. Govėdas, choir director, composer.
• Introductory greetings from Rasa and Paulius Kuras, Heads of the Organizing Committee.
• Krivių Krivaitis, Kęstutis Kalvaitis, united the repertoire.

The Festival advanced at the hands of 17 conductors:

• Nijolė Puranaitė-Benotienė
• Gintarė Bukauskienė
• Kęstutis Daugirdas
• Deimantė Grigutienė
• Romualdas Gražinis
• Rimas Kasputis
• Rita Čyvaitė-Kliorienė
• Saulius Kliorys
• Liudas Landsbergis
• Dalia Mockienė
• Birutė Mockienė
• Raimundas Obalis
• Darius Polikaitis
• Alexandre Stankevičius
• Alfonsas Vildžiunas
• Dainius Vaičekonis
• Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė

The Festival ended with concluding words from President Vytas Maciūnas of the Lithuanian-American Community, Inc., who invited everyone to the 2012 Lithuanian Folk Dance in Boston and Joana Kuraitė-Lasienė, President of the Lithuanian-Canadian Community, Inc.

Lithuania’s Ambassador to Canada, Gintė Damušytė, presented to the Artistic Director, Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė The Order of Merit from Lithuania’s President Dalia Grybauskaitė. It was a symbolic gesture acknowledging all who worked to make the Festival a success.

With the singers holding yellow, green, and red lights, the color of Lithuania’s flag, the Festival ended with M. Mikutavičius singing his composition, “Let Us Greet Each Other.” He was joined by everyone present.

REPERTOIRE

In choosing the repertoire the driving force for the Artistic Director, Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė, was to find a way to include the works by Lithuanian composers outside of Lithuania. Thus, there opened up an opportunity to include six new compositions.

Also, a great emphasis was placed to include songs that could be sung with the audience, a tradition begun at the VIII Song Festival by its Artistic Director, Rita Čyvaitė-Kliorienė, who harmonized the five songs chosen. Rita Čyvaitė-Kliorienė’s contribution extended from creating new works for the festival to working in a close and professional relationship with this year’s Artistic Director, Dalia Skinskaitė-Viskontienė.

Included in the repertoire were works that were complex and challenging. Many choir directors marveled at their complexity and commended the choirs for their performance.

The Festival was,also, unique in that for the first time many young choir directors conducted such massive number of singers:

• Kęstutis Daugirdas
• Saulius Kliorys
• Liudas Lansbergis
• Dalia Mockienė
• Dainius Vaičekonis

ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

Artistic Director, Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė, tried as much as possible to include young members into committees: visual effects, repertoire, choir directors’ workweek, gala events etc. The same emphasis was placed on the event by other members of the Organizing Committee:

• Paulius Kuras
• Rasa Kurienė
• Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė
• Rūta Kličiene
• Julija Danaitienė
• Gitana Judvytytė
• Dalia Pajarskaitė-Peddle
• Rūta Žilinskienė

This committee of nine members was the heart of the Festival. They inspired 300 volunteers to work four years to bring the Festival from its inception to fruition.

MUSIC COMMITTEE

Knowing the strength of the choirs was this committees task in designing the repertoire:

• Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė
• Rita Čyvaitė-Klorienė
• Darius Polikaitis

They were aided by directors of childrens’ and youth choirs

• Nijolė Puranaitė-Benotienė
• Saulius Kliorys
• Birutė Mockienė

COMMITTEE FOR TEACHING TAPES OF THE SONGS

• Darius Polikaitis
• Rima Birutienė
• Saulius Kliorys
• Kristina Kliorytė

COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONDUCTORS’ SEMINARS AT DAINAVA

• Rusnė Kasputienė
• Rita Čyvaitė-Kliorienė
• Saulius Kliorys
• Birutė Mockienė

WORKING COMMITTEES

• VISUAL EFFECS: Jurgis Sederavičius
• DECORATIONS: Raimundas Paškauskas, Jurgis Valaitis
• COSTUMES: Ramunė Stravinskaitė, Ramunė Stravinskienė
• PHOTOGRAPHY: Daina Puterienė. Romas Puteris
• HOUSE MANAGER: Viktoras Šimkus
• TRANSPORTATION: Raimundas Valadka
• PRESS: Nijolė Puranaitė-Benotienė, Andrea Benotaitė, Danguolė Lelienė, Gabija Petrauskienė
• TECHNICAL SUPPORT: Leonas Baziliauskas, Birutė Litvinienė, Gintas Neimanas, Arūnas Pabedinskas, Rūta Rusinienė
• WEBSITE AND INTERNET INFO: Dalia Pajarskaitė-Peddle, Andrea Benotaitė, Andrius Birgiolas, Vaiva Kuraitė
• CHOIR DIRECTORS’ DINNER: Morkus Sungaila, Ina Sungailienė, Andrius Birgiolas, Snaigė Šileikienė, Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė
• REHEARSAL: Aldona Bubulienė
• STREET PARTY: Tomas Kuras
• SUNDAY MASSES: Prelate Edmundas J. Putrimas, Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė
• GALA: Silvija Saplienė
• TICKET SALES: Algis Kaminskas, Paulius Kuras, Virginia Zubrickienė
• M.MIKUTAVIČIUS CONCERT: Gitana Judvytytė, Teodoras Pabreža, Romas Krasauskas
• VIP RECEPTION: Rūta Žilinskienė, Aušra, Karkienė, Irena Meiklejohn, Dalia Valaitienė
• CRAFT FAIR AND SOUVENIRS: Laima Lafitte, Linas Zubrickas
• SAFETY: Jonas Putrimas
• COORDINATING FUNDS COMMITTEE : Paulius Kuras

This history of the IX SONG DANCE FESTIVAL is being written three years after the event. It is the summation of an event to which countless people contributed their hearts and talents. It unified all who touched it and showed how much could be accomplished by volunteers who believed in the project.

The Festival could not have been so successful without the effort, imagination, and stimulus of Dalia Skrinskaitė-Viskontienė, who after 32 years brought it back to Toronto, Canada. Nor could it have motivated so many to give of their time and creativity without the inspiration and professionalism of Paulius and Rasa Kuras.