Latvia

Visu gadu dziesmas krãju, Jãņu dienu 
gaidĩdama: Lĩgo dziesmas (Ligo Songs)
T. Kalina choir, director E. Račevskis 
Melodia, C 30-13521-2, made in the USSR

My collection of international records as well as my obsession with thrift store records got started when a box of Latvian records landed in my possession some 15 years ago. There were about 40 of them, mostly orchestral works, some popular. And now I have  suddenly 45 Latvian records. The other five showed up, to my surprise, at the Goodwill just around the corner, just last week. Better yet, one of these five was a Lĩgo dziesmas, a type of song that was my favorite Latvian record from the original stack. Dziesmas, I first thought meant 'Christmas' (which would typically, but not always, make me snub a record), but it in fact simply means 'song'. Lĩgo then is the solstice, and the ligo songs are midsummer night songs. It's a nice proposition for a great record of songs and I wish some folksinger, some cult hero would sing it but it's all orchestras and choirs, and tenors and sopranos. Still, don't get me wrong, it's very nice. Listen to the second song of side A below or get it here