In order to celebrate the European Capital of Culture year, we are inviting everyone to Tallinn`s Freedom Square today at 20:00 to listen to the premiere of Margo Kõlar`s musical composition “Song of the Tower Bells”, written specially for this event.

For nearly 20 minutes, ten churches around the city will be filling the Old Town with a unique sound: the harmonious concert of the bells of the city’s church towers, some of which have gone unheard for years. They will once again ring out and be heard by all of the old Hanseatic city’s residents with the help of modern technology. The churches and cathedrals participating in this unique performance include St. Aleksander Nevsky Cathedral, the Church of St. Nicholas the Miracle-Worker, the Orthodox Church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord, the Roman-Catholic Church of St Peter and St Paul, Episcopal Dome Church, St. Olaf’s Church, the Lutheran Church of the Holy Spirit, the Ukrainian-Greek Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church of Charles XI and St. John’s Church.

The audio-visual experience will be made complete by a video mapping by artist Taavi Varm who will be using the architecture of St. John’s Church as a unique canvas. As such, Freedom Square will be the meeting place for ancient and modern Tallinn and both remote and contemporary culture.

Following the unique “Song of the Tower Bells”, the mixed choir of the Estonian Public Broadcasting (ERR), conducted by Hirvo Surva, will perform Christmas songs. At the same time, Tallinn`s Freedom Square will be submerged in a shimmering sea of candlelight. Many candles were given as a gift by Tallinn city districts, volunteers will be handing out more candles to the public during the course of the event and adding to the glow will be the candles on Taavi Varm`s video mapping. We kindly ask everyone to bring their own candles along as well to give even more brightness and power to this united sea of culture.

Following the performance of Christmas songs by the ERR mixed choir, it is time to look back on Tallinn’s year as the European Capital of Culture. Reflecting on its success will be Edgar Savisaar, the mayor of Tallinn, and Jaanus Mutli, a Member of the Management Board of Foundation Tallinn 2011.

The closing ceremony of Tallinn 2011 will end with a fire show on Harju Hill (Harjumägi). Burning the 8m wide and 2m high fire sculpture called “2011” will celebrate the winter solstice, the darkest night of the year and the end of the European Capital of Culture year. The fire sculpture was made by the fireworks’ company Ruf.

The entire closing ceremony will be lead by Urmas Vaino, a TV presenter of Estonian Television (ETV) who was also in charge of leading the opening ceremony of the European Capital of Culture together with singer Lenna Kuurmaa on Theatre Square on 31 December 2011 and the Tallinn Maritime Days’ programme on the Admirality stage on 15-17 July.

The closing ceremony of Tallinn 2011 will be held on Freedom Square tonight and it is free of charge.