Anna Miller
Anna Miller. Private collection of I. Rüütel.
I heard about the Valjala singer Anna Miller in 1974, when I was on my holiday in Saaremaa. She performed just a few songs, but among them was the most valuable finding of my Saaremaa trips: an alliterative shipwreck song, in which a widely known storyline was put in a local context. (From the chapter "The situations and purposes of collection"; Rüütel 2015: 21)
There are songs of various moods among the seamen's songs, oftentimes there is motif of a shipwreck in a stormy sea. /---/ The theme of seamen's life was already present in Anna Miller's alliterative shipwreck song, that her mother sung, while working on the spinning wheel. (From the chapter "Seamen's, prisoners' and destiny songs"; Rüütel 2015: 91)
The tune of Anna Miller's shipwreck song is also archaic, but with some newer features in poetic form; it is two verses long just as Tiina Rand's wedding tune and most of Mustjala general tunes. /---/ The melody of "Shipwreck" has a peculiar modality. (From the chapter "Tunes of alliterative songs"; Rüütel 2015: 33)
Songs:
Anna Miller, born 1882, Võhma village, has lived in Orinõmme village [Pöide parish] and Turja village [Valjala parish]. Recorded by I. Rüütel in 1974.
Publication
Introduction to publication
Performers
Performers by village
Asva village (Pöide)
Audla village (Pöide)
Haeska village (Valjala)
Kalma village (Pöide)
Kiriku village (Valjala)
Kungla village (Valjala)
Kõiguste village (Pöide)
Kõnnu village (Valjala)
Liiva-Putla village (Püha)
Loona village (Püha)
Mässa village (Jämaja)
Orinõmme village (Pöide)
Oti settlement (Pöide)
Pahavalla village (Pöide)
Ridala village (Pöide)
Soonda village (Muhu)
Sõrve
Turja village (Valjala)
Tõnija village (Valjala)
Veere village (Pöide)
Võhma village (Pöide)
Sound recordings
Headings of the songs Aa-Zz
- 1. Shipwreck
- 2. Once upon a time there lived a man (David and Goliath)
- 3. The tailors' party
- 4. Skylark
- 5. Timmu-tammu
- 6. Back in the year of 1906
- 7. The Germans have been looking for a fight for quite a while
- 8. 'Twas a lad from around the Haeska manor
- 9. It's gonna turn pretty noisy around here
- 10. Kuressaare recreational park and seashore
- 11. Our fathers and mothers are islanders
- 12. Our Saaremaa
- 13. Little sister-islands
- 14. In a castle atop the mountain (circle game with insert dance songs)
- 15. The road through Sääre village
- 16. Our Saaremaa
- 17. Passing by the Pöide church
- 18. And the twenty one (circle game)
- 19. Alone amongst strangers
- 20. Mother took the cradle to the meadow
- 21. Birds upon the treetops
- 22. I'll take a young wife
- 23. Horn tune
- 24. Girl, your gaze strikes right through the heart (soldiers' song)
- 25a. The big mighty ship (insert dance song of a circle game)
- 25b. I sat on the threshold (insert dance song of a circle game)
- 25c. War, oh war (insert dance song of a circle game)
- 25d. I saw a flower in the valley (insert dance song of a circle game)
- 25e. Flowers blooming in the meadow (insert dance song of a circle game)
- 25f. Estonian boy (insert dance song of a circle game)
- 26. Girlie girl (circle game with insert dance songs)
- 27. High atop the mast
- 28. On the battlefield in the far away land
- 29. Soon comes the time
- 30. On the wide expanse of the Atlantic
- 31. Coming to Toila (song of a deep-sea sounding team)
- 32. In February, when the weather's harsh (seal hunter's song)
- 33. Whoever sailed the sea
- 34. Tip of Sõrve is a nest of songs
- Aasa peal õitsevad (ringmängu vahelaul)
- Atlandi ookeani laial pinnal
- Ema viis hälli heinamaale
- Ennemuiste oli üks mees (Taavet ja Koljat)
- Juba väljal puude otsas
- Kaugel üksi võõra rahva hulgas
- Kes purjetand on laevaga
- Kui aastanumber sai 1906
- Kui läed mööda Pöide kergust
- Kui rätsepate aastapäev
- Kui Toila tulin (loodipoiste laul)
- Kuressaare huvielu park ja mereäär
- Kõrgel masti tipus
- Küll te kuulete siin müra
- Küünlakuus, kui ilm on käre (hülgeküti laul)
- Laevahukk
- Liiri-lööri löuke
- Meie isad ja emad on saarlased
- Mina istsin ukseläve pääl (ringmängu vahelaul)
- Mina nägin orus lille (ringmängu vahelaul)
- Mäe otsas kaljulossis (ringmäng vahelauludega)
- Neiu, sinu silmavaade (sõdurilaul)
- Neiukene noorukene (ringmäng vahelauludega)
- Oh eesti poiss (ringmängu vahelaul)
- Oh sõda, sõda (ringmängu vahelaul)
- Oh te väiksed sõsarsaared
- Pea jõuab aeg
- Sakslane küll tahtis ammu
- Sarvelugu
- Seal võõrsil valuväljal
- See kakskümmend üks (ringmäng)
- See oli üks Haeska mõisa ligidalt poiss
- See Saaremaa
- See Saaremaa
- See suure uhke laevaga (ringmängu vahelaul)
- Sörve ots on laulupesa
- Tee Säärekülast läbi käib
- Timmu-tammu
- Võtan aga naise noorukese