ITL Mixed Choir
Mixed Choir ”ITL Segakoor” choir was founded on 25 August 2010. The members of the choir mainly include people from the Estonian Association of Information Technology and Telecommunications (ITL) companies who are interested in singing and music, but the choir also welcomes other people with an interest in singing.
The choir members can participate in singing rehearsals and camps, voice instruction, note study and choral singing, and avail of vocal self-improvement opportunities led by professional conductors. The size of the mixed choir is currently 50 singers.
The chief conductor of the mixed choir is Paul Purga. The youthful choir conductor’s scholarship competition was won by Rasmus Laks. Rasmus has continued to contribute his youthful thinking and positive energy to the choir, and he supports the development of the choir in every way possible. For the last few years, Karin Salumäe has been training the voices of the choir as the vocal trainer. Choreographer Saima Kallionsivu and dance pedagogue Märt Agu have helped the mixed choir with choreography and dance steps.
The first performance of the mixed choir took place at the From Vision to Solution innovation conference in October 2010. To date, the choir has performed publicly and mainly for charity at three general song festivals and choir festivals in Venice, Austria, Portugal, Spain and Greece. Next year, it is planned to take part in the international choir singing competition in Lucca, Italy. In addition, the choir has performed in various major projects at the Berlin Philharmonic, Temppeliaukio Church in Helsinki, Alexela Concert Hall and many churches at home and abroad.
The repertoire of the ITL mixed choir includes choir singing classics such as Läte, Hermann, Tormis, as well as Ellington and Gershwin, etc, but they also find time for modern composers, including Ehala, Tüür, Sisask, Uusberg and many others. In recent years, the repertoire has also included such great works as J.Brahms’ “German Requiem”, M.Palmeri’s “Misa a Buenos Aires” and
G.Verdi’s “Requiem”. In addition, the choir itself has commissioned and staged the musical “Maailma parim laulukoor” (“The World’s Best Song Choir”) written by A.Ilves/S.Kallionsivu and P. Pajusaar.
If you are interested in more about the activities or future plans of the choir, don’t hesitate to contact us at segakoor@itl.ee
In May 2025, the ITL Segakoor, together with soloist Maarja Purga, bandoneon virtuoso Kaspar Uljas, pianist Samuel Bezerra, singers from the mixed choir “Siller” (Finland), the male choir “Hyvinkää Työväen Mieskuoro” (Finland), the chamber choir “HMSKK” (Finland), the dance group “Helsingi helmed” (Finland), and the orchestra “Encanto Tango Band” (Finland), gave a successful sold-out concert at Helsinki’s Temppeliaukio Church, where Pärt Uusberg’s “Õhtu ilu” and Martin Palmeri’s mass “Misa a Buenos Aires” were performed.
In May, the choir also produced a unique video of Veljo Tormis’ song “Varjele, Jumala, soesta”, with which the choir contributed to the recording of the composer’s virtual cultural heritage and which was performed at the singing competition dedicated to Tormis’ 95th birthday.
At the beginning of July, the ITL Segakoor participated in the Song and Dance Celebration “ISEOMA” („My Own). This was already the choir’s third consecutive general song celebration for which it had successfully qualified.
At the end of August, the choir began its new singing season in Käsmu, where, before performance of the Ancient bonfires, the choir planted a red oak near to their new singing stage. The ITL Segakoor in Käsmu also celebrated its 15th anniversary and the illustrated book “Ahelhingan kuni elan” (“I will breathe in chains as long as I live”) written by Maris Pruuli about the activities and history of the ITL Segakoor was published.
In the next choir’s plans include an international choir competition „5th Vox Lucensis – Concordo Corale Internazionale“, to be held in Lucca, Italy, at the end of March 2026, for which the choir registered in September and for which preparations are now in full swing.
In May 2024, a spring concert was held in Riga, in which the ITL Mixed Choir participated together with the Latvian Mixed Choir “Fēnikss” and the Lithuanian Mixed Choir “Libro”. Also, the ITL Segakoor took part in the RockIT 10 anniversary concert with its band ShowBit together with other bands from the IT sector. At the end of June, the mixed choir took part in the performance of Verdi’s Requiem at the Berlin Philharmonic together with a joiny choir and orchestra of up to 1,000 singers. The mixed choir will continue with the acquisition of the repertoire of the Song and Dance Celebration “ISEOMA” („My Own) in 2025.
In February 2023 the ITL Segakoor recorded the song “Isamaale” („To Fatherland“) written by composer Eino Tamberg to the words of an Estonian famous poet Juhan Liiv and presented the video on the Independence day of the Republic of Estonia.
After several corona years the choir participated in the international music festival in Thessaloniki, Greece in May. The lively and brilliant perfomance at the final concert resulted in special audience award. At the beginning of June the choir gave an emotional and cheerful/spirited concert “Muuvikal” together with the EKA Chamber Choir.
In September, the ITL Segakoor was registered for the Song and Dance Celebration “ISEOMA” („My Own) in 2025. In December, the mixed choir gave a spectacular concert of S. Dobrogosz’s „Mass“ and M. Palmer’s Misatango or “Misa a Buenos Aires” in Jaani’s Church in Tallinn together with the project orchestra “Ventum”, soloist Maarja Purga, bandoneon virtuoso Kaspar Uljas, pianist Mari Visnapuumägi, “Vanalinna Segakoor ” and with the singers of the chamber choir “Kuule” (Finland).