Estonian Folk Music

Estonian folk music is the traditional music of Estonia: the ancient runo song (regilaul), with its short repeated lines, narrow range and leader-chorus alternation, sung for centuries at work and rite, and the later village repertory of bagpipe, fiddle and kannel dance tunes. Suppressed as peasant culture under Soviet rule yet preserved by collectors and the great song festivals, it was revived from the 1970s by singers and scholars, and carried into contemporary folk by *Mari Kalkun*, *Maarja Nuut* and *Trad.Attack!*, who rebuild regilaul and archival recordings with modern instruments.