Festival History

When Leigo estate owner Tõnu Tamm went looking for a summer home at Leigo in 1981, he was unable to leave. A threshing barn with a collapsed roof, a courtyard overgrown with nettles, a small pond, marshland with meadowsweet and an overgrown landscape nourished his dream of a piece of land so deeply that it has now become a beautiful home with 14 lakes and several buildings.

Back then it took several years for the first (artificial) lake to be created, in the middle of which there still stands a small island with old willows. It was on this very island that in 1998 Tõnu’s dream — which had begun to take shape on his Siberian travels — of hearing beautiful music in the open countryside came true. The first concert at Leigo was given by Tallinn Brass.

However, since the estate owner’s dream — a large symphony orchestra at Leigo — did not fit well on the small lake, a larger one had to be created. In 2001 both the lake itself and the so-called upside-down umbrella stage were completed, and the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra performed. On that occasion, and for many years thereafter, another seemingly impossible idea also came true: an organ concert in the open air, made possible by the newly acquired digital organ and then almost unbelievable quadro surround amplification.

Over the years many orchestras have visited Leigo — among them Kremerata Baltica, the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, the Nordic Symphony Orchestra, the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, the All-Estonian Youth Symphony Orchestra; and among choirs, the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, the Estonian National Male Choir and the mixed choir Latvija. Large ensembles fitted well on the large lake stage, but there was still a wish to see the musicians, their breathing and their presence, up close — the stage was too far away. So in 2013 the concerts moved back to the small willow island.

A particularly interesting period at Leigo was in the years 2006–2015, when alongside the usual classical music, more jazz, folk, indie and popular musicians joined, along with theatre performances. Leigo audiences have been delighted by Chalice, Emiliana Torrini, Eric Truffaz, Jäääär, Kimmo Pohjonen, Mari Boine, múm, Nils Petter Molvær, Siiri Sisask, Ultima Thule, the Urb brothers, Villu Veski and very many others from all over the world.