Winter Baroque music is coming to town

During the second half of the 16th century European sensibilities towards art, including music, began to change. There is no universal agreement, though, when the Baroque era began, and no evidence to suggest that it occurred as a synchronic development. Baroque music describes a style of European classical music extending from 1600 to 1750. It is said that this era in music had begun after the Renaissance, and was followed by the Classical era. The word Baroque was borrowed from architecture to describe the elaborate music of the day. Baroque music is full of confidence and is very complicated. It is also lively, engaging and it seems to always be in motion. In the late 18th century, a period during which the dominant style stressed elegance and simplicity, writers used the word baroque to describe earlier music (as well as painting, sculpture and architecture) that seemed to them to be distorted by a profusion of unnatural ornamentation.

Estonia says it can fix the euro boat

In the square of Tallinn s Tammsaare park, a queue of cold but curious Estonians stretches round in a small circle, waiting to get their turn in front of a giant plastic cow. The sacred cow, as it s called, is a new work of art apparently designed to symbolise the importance Estonian policymakers attach to membership of the eurozone. But that is not what is drawing the crowds on this chilly winter s day. For a short while only, this cow will exchange 1 old Estonian kroon for one freshly minted Estonian euro coin. That is about 15 times better than the official exchange rate. The Kroon goes in the cows mouth and then, as if by magic a new euro coin appears from the cows behind. Smooth transition It is not completely clear what the artist is trying to say and the cow has apparently suffered repeated mechanical problems.

Estonia Will Adopt European Currency

Estonia, which emerges in a copy of a deep recession, will adopt the European currency in January, although the euro area is undergoing its worst crisis since its creation in 1999 because of the huge sovereign debt of many of its members. The Baltic country of 1.3 million inhabitants, a member since 2004 of the European Union (EU of 27 members), will become the 1st January in the seventeenth member of the eurozone, will also be the third former communist country after Slovenia in 2007 and Slovakia in 2009, to adopt the euro. According to surveys, about half of Estonians want the euro to replace the crown currency created in 1992 to replace the Soviet ruble, after five decades of domination by Moscow. The Estonian center-right government, which implemented a strict economic policy since before the global crisis, believes that the euro changeover is advantageous and is a logical step for a small open economy to the world.

Christmas Jazz brings the world s best performers to Estonia

Estonia s Jazzkaar music festival has become a major European musical event featuring world class performers in a historic setting. The name Jazzkaar reminds one of the Estonian folk party Jaskar. The festival itself unites musicians and audience through an immense variety of musical periods and styles. Just like the host city s mix of both the traditional and modern, Jazzkaar celebrates a musical genre that borrows from the past, while also looking into the future. The festival began in the autumn 1990, while Estonia was still under Soviet rule. The first festival was titled «The Days of Jazz Blues in Tallinn.» After Estonia re-gained its independence the following year, the festival s name was changed to Jazzkaar. Since the festival began almost 20 years ago, it has hosted more than 2,000 musicians from over 50 countries.

Tallinn to host key cultural events

Estonia is to host over 7,000 cultural events as part of the country s celebrations of adopting the euro and becoming a European Capital of Culture. The first event will be held on New Year s Eve and will be held in the country s capital city of Tallinn to mark the start of a key year for Estonia. Centring on the main square, there will be a music festival followed by a large fireworks display. It is expected that the prime ministers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania will be attending the celebrations. Estonia Tourist Board s director, Tarmo Mutso, said: Tallinn is going to be buzzing every day throughout 2011 as visitors, performers and venues make the most of Tallinn s role as Capital of Culture. He added that the city s hotels and event organisers have responded well to the demand and international challenges.

Restoration of Historic Church Altar Finally Complete

On November 17 the Orthodox Church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord in Tallinn will hold a ceremony to mark the completion, after more than a decade, of restoration work on its elaborate altar, which was a gift by Peter the Great in the early 18th century. Specifically, the restoration work was carried out on the church s iconostasis, the wall of icons at the back of the altar that separates the nave from the church s sanctuary. Installed in 1719, the multi-tiered iconostasis was created under the supervision of Ivan Zarudny, whose work includes the altar of the Peter-Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg. Three centuries of damage caused by dry air, insects and repainting, however, had left it in critical condition. Restoration of the iconostasis began in 2000, helped along by more than 12,800 euros from the Tallinn city government.

Estonia s taxation system attracts fast-growing companies

Estonia has the best laws, very good banks, cheap bookkeeping services and less bureaucracy than, for instance, in Germany or Lithuania. But the most important thing is that Estonia does not tax profits, says Nerijus Strumila, board member of Lithuanian-owned Euroalliance that is registered in Estonia. The Lithuanian family-owned business that is registered in Estonia sells scrap metal and trades goods abroad, mostly operating in Germany, US, Lithuania and elsewhere in the EU. It is also a textbook example of foreign businessmen whose markets are outside Estonia, but who decide to incorporate the company in Estonia for tax reasons, writes Äripäev. Euroalliance was founded in 2005 and is 100 owned by Antaninan Strumiliene, mother of Nerijus Strumila. The company made a profit of 70 million kroons at sales of 160 million kroons in 2008 putting its owner on 218th place in the Äripäev list of Estonia s richest businessmen.

Estonian Inflation Accelerates to Highest Rate in 20 Months on Food, Fuel

Estonian inflation accelerated in September to the fastest pace in 20 months, mainly because of rising food and heating prices. Consumer prices rose 4 percent from a year earlier, the biggest jump since January 2009, compared with 2.9 percent in August, the Tallinn-based statistics office said today on its website. The median estimate of three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was 3.5 percent. Prices rose 0.8 percent on the month. Inflation expectations in the Baltic nation of 1.3 million people are rising because of increasing food and fuel costs and concern that adopting the euro in January will boost prices. The central bank is trying to protect Estonia s economic recovery after inflation accelerated to 10.6 percent in 2008, choking off domestic demand and contributing to the European Union s second- deepest recession during the global financial crisis.

Tallinn, Estonia: a cultural guide

While some cities are best enjoyed on hot summer days Siena, say, or Carcassonne others come into their own in the cold. Tallinn, the diminutive capital of Estonia, begs to be explored when there s a nip in the air or, even better, when its narrow medieval buildings and cobbled streets are shrouded under a blanket of snow. Ancient merchants houses and cellars, home now to candle-lit and fire-warmed cafés and restaurants, lure visitors indoors to indulge in hot chocolate, spiced wine and hearty borsch. Better still, the cruise ships that ply the Baltic set sail for warmer climes come autumn, no longer disgorging their passengers into Tallinn s bijou Old Town. In fact, a common complaint from Tallinn s cruise-borne visitors is that insufficient time is set aside to explore the city.

Estonia-developed innovation applied milk technology in South Korea

Maeil Dairies Company, a milk products producing company based in South Korea, has started using lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus Fermentum ME-3 discovered in Estonia eight years ago. The know-how has been recently patented by the University of Tartu. The South Korean company s product line Pure which added the new ingredient to its contents, also implements other well-known probiotic bacteria, writes LETA. Preparations for product development and coordinating all the necessary clearances with local authorities took several years. The company plans to use the ME-3 bacteria in a brand new product series that is still in the developing process, said the university s marketing director for industrial property, Jane Saatre. The Maeil Dairies Company s contract with the University of Tartu permits other businesses in the region to use the bacterium as well.