Trad.Attack! / Estonia
“They are danceable and with no borders this is a music of invention and genre breaking openness that is a true music”, said John Robb of Louder than War portal / magazine about the band. “They are a perfect example of the future of folk music”, added Aengus Finnan, director of Folk Alliance International. Finally, Helen Sildna, director of the Tallinn Music Week conference summed them up with: “Their music is like a fireball, like fresh grapefruit juice, it revives you, you have to use it every morning!”
It is all about the Trad.Attack! It is currently one of the most interesting bands of the music scene in Estonia. They give captivating and dynamic concerts despite the fact that they are just a trio, using only acoustic instruments. They debuted only two years ago; however, they already won several music awards in Estonia and went on an international tour, spanning many countries, from the United States to Malaysia. They are inspired by archive records of traditional music, as well as contemporary trends. All members of the trio sing, and among their instruments we can find both traditional Estonian bagpipes or drumla, as well as saxophone, acoustic guitar or drums.
Sandra, Jalmar and Tõnu were good friends for many years, and they were active on the Estonian music scene for over a decade. Sandra, who was raised surrounded by traditional music started playing Estonian bagpipes when she was 13. Jalmar belongs to the Seto minority, a small community in southern Estonia with their distinct culture, distinguished by traditional singing. His great-grandmother, Anne Vabama, was one of the best known folk singers in Estonia, and Tonų’s father was a conductor of wind orchestra, so young Tonų started learning playing on them early on.
At first they started playing for fun and do something “new” with folk music, so their first song, “Kooreke”, becoming a hit in Estonia was quite a surprise to them. Their first concerts proved that this experiment makes sense. Nowadays no one doubts that any more.
Members of the group:
Sandra Sillamaa – Estonian bagpipes, drumla, saxophone, vocals
Jalmar Vabarna – 12-string acoustic guitar, vocals
Tõnu Tubli – drums, percussion instruments, vocals
fot. Rene Altrov
The concert took place in 2016.